


Warlord's Daughter

by Guardian_of_Hope



Category: Power Rangers Ninja Storm
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-04-10
Updated: 2011-12-24
Packaged: 2017-10-17 20:47:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 23
Words: 26,576
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/181029
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Guardian_of_Hope/pseuds/Guardian_of_Hope
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>My name is Angel Raven Watanabe, they called me the Warlord's Daughter, my enemies were his. Then, Lothor betrayed me.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Raven

**Author's Note:**

> This story is set in an ALTERNATE UNIVERSE, and it is MASSIVELY ALTERNATE
> 
> Also, let it be known that while having some knowledge of the TV show is necessary to know who the characters are and such, the story time line will be very, very loosely based on the cannon time line.

_Pretty,_ I thought as I stood at the view port, staring at the world below me, _what do we blow up first?_ Behind me, Father's minions marched past on their important duties and somewhere nearby my cousins began _another_ shouting match. I tucked my life support helmet under my arm and continued my walk through the familiar corridors of Father's ship, headed for the bridge. As I approached the open hatch, I could hear my father's most trusted general speaking. "Sir, there are three students of the Wind Ninja Academy unaccounted for."

My steps faltered, _What was going on?_ I took a deep breath, resisted the urge to smooth down my hair and stepped onto the bridge. "Father," I said, walking around his pretentious captain's chair, trying not to stare at the latest additions to the 'Throne of Doom'. "I have returned."

Father, in his full war regalia, smiled, "Finally, someone who is actually competent." He stood up and stepped down.

I stepped back, "No hugging in regalia," I told him, "it pokes in all the wrong places."

"Of course," Father replied.

"Why did you recall me?" I asked, "I was graduating in a month anyway."

"Because," Father said, he stepped up to one of the bridge panels and created a holographic representation of Earth, "it is time."

"Time for what?" I asked, "Because I could seriously be in navigation right now, you know, actually learning something."

"It is time for me to exact my revenge on the Wind Ninja Academy for their exile." Father replied.

"Oh," I replied, I shifted my helmet, "What does that have to do with the cost of jet fuel on Eltare?"

"Raven," Father said, he turned and slung his arm over my shoulder. I tried not to flinch, because, really, body arm was not comfortable, no matter how many layers were between you and it. "I need your help." He leaned over and grabbed a datapad, slipping it into my hand.

I read the written message on it and nodded slightly, "Tell me what I can do to help," I said, erasing the message.

"Excellent," Father declared turning away, arms lifted. I turned to watch him, glancing at Zurgane from the corner of my eye. "We must find the missing Wind Ninjas," Father said, taking his seat, "And then, we will achieve our victory."

I saluted moments before Zurgane did, letting a smirk creep on to my lips as I listened to Father. I am, after all, Lothor's daughter.


	2. Angel

Shane first noticed the girl the day he'd been given the Wind Morpher. She had been at the store where he had stopped to buy bread and milk for his mom. The next day, he saw her at the skate park. She was sitting on a bench watching them; with what Shane thought was a sketch book in her hands. He rolled over beside her and sat down, "Hi," he said.

She looked up and smiled, "Hi." Then she looked back at her sketch book.

"What are you drawing?" Shane asked, leaning over slightly.

She tilted the book to him, the sketch was a guy on a skate board, but it was a caricature and the face, "You," she said, smiling at him shyly.

"I'm not sure that's proportionate," Shane replied, then he grinned, "I'm Shane, Shane Clark, you're a good artist."

"Thanks," she said, she pushed her black hair behind her ear and smiled, "I'm Angel Raven."

"That's a pretty name," Shane said. He wondered where she was from, her accent made her name sound like a song.

Angel ducked her head, blushing, but looked up as someone skated by. "Where'd you learn to do…what you do?"

"That?" Shane said, "It's mostly trial and error actually. It takes a lot of practice, and can be rather painful." He winced as one of the others fell of a rail.

"I can see that," Angel said, softly.

"You want to try it?" Shane asked as he pulled his helmet off.

"Ok," Angel said, "it can't be that much different than snowboarding, right?"

"I wouldn't know," Shane said, standing up, "I've never been snowboarding."

She folded her sketchbook and put it on the bench before standing up. "What do I do first?" She asked.

"First, we get you in the protective gear." Shane said and handed over his helmet before pulling of his elbow and knee pads. "Safety first, right?"

Angel grinned at him as she pulled his helmet on, "Always."

Safety gear on, Shane picked up his board, "Now, this is a skateboard. Unlike a snowboard, it has wheels."

"Shane," Angel said, "I'm not that innocent." She paused, "I mean stupid. Sorry."

"It's ok," Shane replied. "I guess you're not from around here, huh?"

"Not exactly," Angel replied. She tapped the board he was holding, "This is a skateboard, so how do I ride it?"

"Like this," Shane put it down, "take my hand and step on it, I'll hold you steady."

Angel put her hand in his, "If I fall, I'm going to hurt you."

"Since you'll probably land on me, I can live with that," Shane replied. Angel stepped onto the board carefully with another of her shy smiles. "Good, now, keep your knees bent slightly. That helps your center of gravity. Now use your right foot and push off from the ground lightly." He held her hand as she did so and walked beside her as the board rolled forward.

"Cool," Angel said, she pushed herself again and released Shane's hand.

"Careful," Shane said.

Angel pushed again and looked back, "I think I'm, oh!" She tumbled backwards.

"Angel!" Shane said and ran over.

"I'm ok," Angel said, pushing his helmet up out of her eyes.

"A little too ambitious, perhaps," Shane said and offered his hand. Angel let him pull her up, "We could try again."

Angel twisted his arm to see his watch and gasped, "I have to go. My dad will be home soon." She began to pull off the safety gear. "It was fun though, Shane."

"Your dad?" Shane said.

"He's insanely overprotective," Angel said, and pulled off his helmet, "thank you." She smiled at him and took off, stopping only to pick up her drawing book before vanishing.

"Raven," her father shouted.

"What?" Raven asked, opening the door to her room as she zipped her black jacket up. "I was in the shower"

"Where have you been?" Lothor said.

"Getting the lay of the land," Raven replied. "The school's slag, by the way, nice shooting; town's ok." She picked up her weapons belt and fastened it as she stepped into the hallway. "Shopping's horrible there. They have no clue what's really fashionable, and all I can say is that I am so glad I have my fighter." She waved her door shut, "I can go shopping soon and get something that doesn't tell the known universe that I spent time on that mud hole planet."

"Earth," Lothor said.

"No, _Aurin,_ " Raven replied, "really, Daddy, this is your planet." She kissed his cheek, "I'm not going to say anything bad about it."

"Really?" Lothor asked.

"Of course not," Raven replied and started to walk away, "just so long as I get to visit some of those beautiful beaches I've heard about."


	3. Lothor

"Raven," Lothor said as she stepped onto the Bridge, "you were speaking with one of those Rangers yesterday."

"I wanted to see the enemy in his native environment," Raven replied. She ran a hand over her hair, pushing the new streak of purple out of her eyes. "He's an idiot, and way too nice for his own good. I can take him easily."

"I don't want you leaving the ship, Raven," Lothor replied.

"I'm a big girl," Raven said, "I can take care of myself." She crossed her arms over her chest and tilted her head, "You were the one who sent me to Aurin, remember? You made sure I trained at the academy there instead of ENS."

"Raven, I know you think you know about Rangers because of the Aurin Rangers," Lothor said, "but for whatever reason these three are defending _him._ There is no telling what they have been told about us or what they will do. You are my daughter and if any of them find that out there is no telling what they would do. There have been Dark Rangers in the past."

"But, Dad," Raven said, "There's no way they'd know about me. It's not as if I tell people I'm _Lothor's_ daughter. I'm not stupid. Besides, Earth's more interesting than up here. Down there, I don't have to listen to Mara and Kapri!"

Lothor closed his eyes behind his mask and then looked around, "Zurgane, you have the com."

"Yes sir!" Zurgane said.

Raven looked at him and made a face. "Raven," Lothor said. Raven looked at him quickly, "Walk with me please." He rose from his throne.

"What do you need?" Raven asked as she let him steer her off the bridge.

"Raven, I have plans for Earth," Lothor said, he glanced at the decking as he tucked his arms behind his back, "big plans. I need to know that I have people I can trust." He glanced over at her, but looked away after a moment.

"Of course you can trust me," Raven said, "you're my dad." She smiled when he looked at her. "I wouldn't be here without you."

Lothor's eyes trailed down to look at Raven's neck where the scar that served as a visible reminder of their past had formed. "Yes, but we are here because of my brother." Lothor replied.

"I'm not him," Raven said, "I know you, father, better than anyone except mom."

"There is one thing you can do to prove to me that I can trust you," Lothor said.

"What's that?" Raven asked stopping and turning to look at her father.

"Go into the chamber behind you," Lothor said softly. "Prove to me that there is one person in this galaxy that I can trust utterly."

Raven nodded slightly, "All right, dad." She smiled, "I'll go in." She turned and found the door behind her open so she walked in. There was a five sided chamber in the room and Raven cast one last look over her shoulder before she stepped inside.

The door to the chamber slid shut and Raven bit her lip, _don't panic,_ she told herself firmly. _Dad will let you out soon. Its ok, you can breathe._

The lights went out and Raven began to breathe faster. "Begin," a computerized voice announced.

 _Begin what?_ Raven wondered. Then she screamed as beams of light came out of the walls and touched her head, causing waves of pain to fill her. Voices whispered just below the threshold of sound and the lights began to move over her body. She clamped her hands to her head and started to sink to the ground. Mercifully, she was unconscious by the time she collapsed.


	4. Rangel

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Italics indicate things going on in Angel's head as opposed to the real world.

Shane was fairly certain that after three weeks of dealing with Lothor's goons he knew all of them, at least by their appearance. This one was new. She, like Marah and Kapri, looked almost human, except her face was hidden. She wore black armor over a purple body suit that bore a strong resemblance to English knights with touches of Ninja influences most noticeably in the three symbols on her face covering. "Who are you supposed to be?" Shane asked. He glanced around the shopping center, but everyone was gone, leaving them to face off in relative privacy.

"My name is Raven," the girl said as she put a hand on her hip. "It is time for you Rangers to meet your doom; Kelzacks!"

Lothor's shock troops poured into the center and Shane went on guard, "In case you missed what's been going on," Shane said, "Kelzacks aren't exactly the kind of creatures that can defeat us."

Raven produced a small red and black device, "Which is why I brought a friend."

The monster had the head of a raven, with white, feathery wings that reminded Shane of the angels at church. Its hands were black and feather and he had oversized bird feet. "I think you need to find some new friends," Dustin said.

"Meet Rangel," Raven said, "and have fun." With a casual wave, she vanished, leaving them to face the monster.

After the fight, Shane stared at Cam's recorded image of Raven, staring at her light brown eyes. He didn't hear anyone say anything until Sensei used his head as a spring board on his way to the Super Computer. "What?" Shane asked.

"What is bothering you Shane?" Sensei asked.

"I think I saw her," Shane replied, "before today. She looked normal, though, so it's hard to tell."

"You saw her?" Dustin asked.

"Yes, right after we got the morphers," Shane said, "I saw her twice, once at a grocery store and once at the skate park. I talked to her at the park, her name was Angel Raven and she wasn't from America. Her accent was different; I'd never heard anything like it."

"What was it like?" Cam asked.

"She rolled the r in Raven and the g was softer than normal, but it wasn't Hispanic." Shane said.

"Was it like bonjour?" Dustin offered.

"Yes," Shane said pointing at Dustin, "that's how she said it."

"You think it was our mysterious Raven," Tori asked, coming over to join them.

"I don't know," Shane said thoughtfully, "but there was something about her that was familiar and I don't know what it is."

 _Angel paced in the purple light trying not to look at the rolling black shadows that crept around the edge of the light. "You might as well give up," a voice said from the shadows. Angel stopped and turned to watch as the shadows coalesce into her doppelganger. "Father wants me and not you."_

 _Angel clenched her fists, "I'd rather travel to the depths of Acheleon than let you in."_

 _The doppelganger laughed, "I'm going to win, Angel."_

" _No you aren't," Angel said and narrowed her eyes; the purple light brightened between them, creating a smooth, curved wall. "You'll never get in and you'll never win. It might take me years, but I'll defeat you and when I do He will regret he ever dreamed of this."_

" _Do you want to know why I'm going to win?" The doppelganger asked._

" _I'm going to have to say no," Angel replied flipping her hair over her shoulder, "But in the time honored tradition of villains everywhere you, no doubt, are going to tell me your life story, dreams, plans and goals."_

" _I'm going to win," the doppelganger began._

" _Because you're going to bore me to death?" Angel suggested mischievously._

" _No," the doppelganger replied, "I will win because I can ask Father to reactivate the chamber as many times as needed to defeat you. You should be paying attention, little Angel, he's proven that repeated use of the chamber can break someone."_

" _What do you mean?" Angel asked, unable to completely keep her unease from showing._

 _The doppelganger gestured and a mirror formed revealing two young men; one was of Asian descent and the other was a blue eyed, blond haired American. "Meet Hunter and Blake Bradley," the doppelganger said cheerfully. "Thunder ninjas and the Crimson and Blue Thunder Rangers. Lothor orphaned those two years ago and now they fight for him convinced that Kanoi Watanabe is the one who killed their parents. They went into the chamber four times each and there is nothing left of the original personalities. Their loyalty is Lothor's alone, just as yours should be."_

 _Angel brushed her cheek with her hand and stared at it, unable to comprehend that she was crying. "Go away," she told the doppelganger. "Leave me be." She narrowed her eyes and the purple light intensified, banishing the doppelganger into the shadows. Left alone, Angel turned her back on the shadows and sank gracefully to her knees as sobs began to wrack her body._ Father _she thought, hugging her body,_ why did you do this to me?


	5. Sensei

Shane stood at the edge of the portal to the Academy, listening to the waterfall in the darkness. He breathed quietly, listening to the wind around him, before beginning to walk across the pond and through the portal and then kicked his rear in gear, because if Lothor enjoyed to pot shot during the day, who knew what he'd do at night. Reaching the door to Ninja Ops, he pulled the door open and closed it behind him. _Someone needs to lock that,_ he thought before heading down the stairs, unsurprised at seeing the doors below wide open. He looked in to find the room dark and he frowned for a moment before realizing that it was late and they were probably sleeping. He stepped back, ready to leave.

"Is something wrong Shane?" Sensei asked as the lights came up.

Shane sighed, "I'm not really sure, Sensei. I just had a visitor."

"What sort of visitor?" Sensei asked.

Shane moved into the room, "Raven just paid me a visit in my bedroom, but she was acting strange."

"Define strange," Sensei said.

"First, she's that girl I met, Angel, I'm positive now." Shane said, sitting down with his back to the table. "Second, she seemed afraid, especially when she first got there. She said she had a message for Kanoi Watanabe."

"What is the message?" Sensei asked.

"She said that Lothor used _Sheng Lei's Spell_ three times and she was one of them." Shane replied. "She also said that she didn't really know what was going on, or why she'd told me to tell you that, but she had to do something."

"You are sure that she said _Sheng Lei's Spell?_ " Sensei said.

"She repeated it," Shane said, "that's what she said. What is that?"

Sensei closed his eyes for a moment, then opened them, "Cam, you might as well come in."

"How did you know I was there?" Cam asked as he came out from behind the computer. "Wait, no, I know, you're the ninja master, of course."

"Indeed," Sensei said, "Now, I need you to bring me a book, Cam. From the back room. You will find it on the top shelf, and it is bound in black metal."

Cam's gaze narrowed, "Dad?"

"Go." Sensei said, "You are the only one who can."

Cam frowned and then nodded, "Yes sir."

Shane felt his eyebrows lift of his own accord, that was the first time he'd ever actually heard Cam be that respectful to his dad. "Shane," Sensei said, "If you wish to stay and hear what the spell is Raven spoke of, you may. However, it is possible that what you learn will leave you in a bad position."

Shane looked at Sensei for a long moment, and then nodded slightly, "I'd rather know," he said quietly.

"Here it is, Dad," Cam said, coming back into the room, caring a small book in his hand.

"I will need you to turn the pages Cam," Sensei said. "Shane, whatever happens, you must not touch the book. It is very dangerous."

"What are we looking for?" Cam asked.

" _The Spell of Sheng Lei,"_ Sensei said.

Cam opened the book as he sat down beside his father's platform and flipped through the pages. Shane shifted slightly, feeling uneasy. "Found it," Cam said, and held it up for his father.

Sensei stared at the page for a long moment and nodded. "Thank you Cam, please return it."

Cam stood and hurried off. "Well?" Shane asked.

Sensei took a deep breath, "This spell is a control spell. There are four types of control spells in the Dark Ninja repertoire. The most basic fills the subject with a desire to do as the castor wishes despite how he or she truly feels on the subject. It is easy to defeat such a spell if one has a strong enough will, but if the castor is asking the subject to do something that the subject doesn't mind or wants to do, then it is easier for the spell to take hold. The second kind suppresses the original personality, creating a new personality more pleasing to the capture. The original personality can be freed of the spell and will feel as if what happened was a dream. The third type destroys the original personality and leaves only the spell created personality. The fourth is the worst sort, and _The Spell of Sheng Lei_ is of this type."

"Ok," Shane said, shifting his seat slightly.

"This type of control spell suppresses the original personality, but leaves it personality aware of what is going on." Sensei said, "the spell created personality can only be laid while the original is unconscious or otherwise unaware such as under the influence of a mind altering substance."

"All right, so was that Raven who came to my room, or the original?" Shane asked after a long moment.

"Most likely, it was the original." Sensei said, and Shane swallowed to hold down the rising nausea. "Especially considering that she was confused about everything that was going on." His nose twitched briefly, "It is possible if the person in question has trained psychic abilities. When the spell personality is 'asleep', the original has a chance to control their body if they are careful."

Shane nodded slightly, "I wonder who she was before Lothor got his hands on her." He murmured, "The first time I met her, she talked about her father."

Sensei sighed, "That is a question only she can answer."

Shane bowed his head and stood, "I should go," he said.

"Shane," Sensei said, "be careful. If Lothor has used this spell three times, then there are two others we must look out for."

Shane bowed deeply, "Yes, Sensei," he murmured. He let himself out of Ninja Ops, but instead of going through the portal and back home, he headed to the cliffs where the wind blew freely. Standing up there in the darkness, with the wind tugging at his clothes and the noise of the ocean blocking out everything else was the closest he'd ever come to truly being one with his element. He closed his eyes against the moonlight and wondered about the girl he'd met. Pretty, holding back because of her accent and difficulty with English but still outgoing. Then his eyes open, because Angel had that odd French accent, but Raven did not. If anything, Raven sounded like his old English teacher. He smiled, that had been Angel in his window earlier, if he could trust the accent.


	6. Black Thunder Ranger...

Angel met the Warlord when she was a child. She didn't know her age, or her name, or much of anything. All she had known was that she was in the slave pens of Laycier, where the pleasure slaves were trained and she was a beautiful child. She also knew that she was a very special child, because all of the guards on the pens told her that. Angel learned in the first few days after she woke up there that beautiful children didn't always grow up in the pens of Laycier.

The Warlord had attacked moments before Angel learned the truth of what being special meant on Laycier, striding through the corridors of the pens with a large sword in one hand and flanked by two men in body armor. "This is her," one of them said.

The Warlord stared at her through his mask, and then nodded, "She comes on my ship. Do what you can for the others."

"Yes sir!" The two men declared as they saluted him.

Angel drew back as they strode into her pen and one of them snapped his fingers, "Let's go girl."

"Gentle, brother," the other said, he half knelt, "It's ok, we're here to rescue you. Come with us."

Angel tried to come towards them, but was afraid. Finally, the first one made an impatient noise and strode over and picked her up. "Let's go," he snapped at the other man.

Angel screamed in fear as the rough hands grabbed her and she struggled as she was carried out of her pen. There was a crackling snap, and Angel shrieked as the world turned upside down and twisted, "Give her here, Micah." Someone said, and Angel was handed over to someone else, "get back down there, then, boyos. I'll see to our Angel."

The crackling snap cut through Angel's near hysteria, but the not so gentle slap brought her out of it. Kneeling before her was a woman with blond curls, "It's ok," the woman said, "I'm sorry I hit you."

Angel sniffed and looked around, they were in a room with grey, metal walls, there was no furniture. She turned back to the woman as she wrapped her arms around her stomach. "Who?" She whispered.

"My name is Cateyla," the woman said. "My husband, the Warlord, rescued you. I would like to take you to put some warmer clothes on. I promise, no one here will hurt you."

xxXXxx

Angel jerked and opened her eyes. She was back in her mindscape prison, and frowned. She hadn't dreamed of her rescue in years. Shaking her head, she twisted slightly, and her imagined bed reformed itself into a chair, aimed at a large "screen" where she could see the world outside using her body's senses.

Raven was walking down a corridor of the ship, coming towards her were two young men in ninja gear. "Rangers," Raven said, stopping to eye them.

"Raven," the taller of the two replied. Angel studied him for a moment, from his blond hair to his sneer, he was attractive, knew it and liked to flaunt it.

"Word to the wise, Thunders," Raven said, "don't let Marah and Kapri see you unmorphed. You'd never get them to leave you alone."

"Should we have to worry about you to?" Blondie asked.

Raven snorted and stepped between and past the two, "In your dreams, Crimson." She turned to look at them, "I am the Warlord's daughter. I don't consort with _minions._ " She flipped her hair over her shoulder and continued on her way.

A hand grabbed her arm, "We aren't minions," Blondie snarled.

"Take your hand off me," Raven said coldly. Blondie didn't move. "You will release me," Raven told him, "or you will be left wishing there was enough of you for Lothor to flog." The hand tightened. Raven lifted her hand, made a fist and released purple and black lightning at his hand. Blondie let go with a yelp, his partner, the Asian, came forward in a rush.

Raven raised her blaster, pointing it straight between his eyes, "I've been nice," she told Asian as he glared at her. "But if either of you ever lay a hand on me and I will castrate you before handing you over to my father." After a moment, Blondie and Asian backed up. Raven engaged the safety on the blaster and slid it into her holster as she spun.

"Lothor's looking for you," Blondie called after her. "He's in the war room."

Raven hissed as she turned around, "Of course," she said with a smile to both boys. She stalked past them and took a cross corridor to the war room. She noticed the boys following her and added, "I grew up on this ship, I'm not likely to get lost."

"Lothor wants to see us too," Asian said.

"Minions," Raven caroled at them.

"What does that make you?" Blondie asked.

"I am the Warlord's daughter," Raven replied, "it is only natural that I be obedient to my father."

Lothor was waiting for the three of them in the war room, his smile when he saw his daughter was soft, "Raven, you look more lovely every day."

"Thanks," Raven said and brushed her lips over his cheek, "What's going on?"

"I want you to spar with the Thunders here," Lothor said, "just to show them what you're capable of."

Raven grinned, "It would be my pleasure." Lothor backed out of the way, as Raven turned to the Thunders with a smirk. "Are you ready, boys?" She drawled, shifting into a guard stance.

"I'll show you minions," Asian snapped and attacked.

It was, Angel thought, a good showing. She leaned back in her chair and let the feedback from Raven's actions tell her about the fight, and the Thunders. The younger, the Asian, was the weaker of the two in some ways. He left himself open too often and not all of them were feints. Blondie, on the other hand, was older and clearly more in tune with his brother and the battle both. They did have a fascinating level of synchronization going on which Angel wished she could really observe.

Finally, Lothor released a noisemaker to catch their attention. "Hunter," He said as they looked at him, "what do you think?"

"I think she'd been a good choice," Blondie said, "bro?"

The Asian nodded as he braced his hands on his knees, "She can fight," he gasped.

"Of course I can," Raven said.

"The thing is," Hunter said, "Blake and I have been training together for years. Raven is good, but she's never channeled before. There's no telling how this will go. I'm willing to try though."

"Try what?" Raven asked.

Asian straightened up, "Hunter and I are going to offer you the deal of a life time."

"We," Hunter said, "that is, Blake and I want you to be a Thunder Ranger. The black Thunder Ranger to be precise."

Raven smiled and held out her hand, "Like I would ever just say no."

"Excellent," Lothor declared, "let's see you use it."

Hunter produced a small, intricately carved box, which, when opened, revealed a morpher.

Angel jerked to her feet with a muttered oath. "Don't these people know _anything_ about morphers? You can't just hand them out, they have to belong to a person!"

Raven reached out, "Show me what to do," she said.

"You don't know if it's going to work," Angel shouted, then flopped back down in her chair. "Then again, if it doesn't, I'll have something amusing to watch."

Hunter had fastened the morpher on Angel's wrist, "The activation phrase is 'Thunder Storm, Ranger Form.'"

Raven smirked, "You first."

Hunter glanced at his brother and stepped back, "Thunder Storm," they said, "Ranger Form."

Raven nodded, "Thunder Storm, Ranger Form!"


	7. Or Not?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bold Italics are a memory

Angel stared for a long moment, and then she started to laugh.

"What happened?" Raven demanded.

"I don't know," Hunter said, "are you sure you did it right?" He flicked his hands, dismissing the morph.

"Raven," Lothor said stepping close to her, he looked straight into her eyes, "what did she do?"

 _Angel looked up as something hit her shield. In a heartbeat, her attention was there, where her doppelganger stood, glaring at her. "Can I help you?" Angel asked, not bothering to hide her amusement._

 _"What did you do to the morpher?" Raven demanded._

 _"Nothing," Angel replied, "you aren't a black ranger. You can't just hand off a morpher like it's a piece of jewelry or a gun, you have to be the right person. Could you be a Ranger? Stranger things have happened, but you aren't a black ranger. You have to have the right color to make it work. That's why your Thunder friends are those particular colors; that is why Brooks is a Ranger instead of Watanabe. For whatever reason, Brooks had the right combination of personality and ability to be a yellow, and Watanabe didn't."_

 _"What about Oliver, he had three colors," Raven said with a tilt to her head that suggested she was accessing their shared memories._

 _"Because he belonged in those colors, some people, some very rare individuals, can be more than one. Whatever color, or colors, you could have, black isn't one of them." Angel crossed her arms, "If you would take five seconds to actually look at my memories from that miserable mud pit, you'd know that."_

 _"Whatever," her doppelganger replied and vanished._

 _Angel chuckled and returned to her viewing. This was just starting to get interesting._

"Apparently, I'm not a black ranger," Raven said. She stripped the morpher from her wrist, "It's nothing more than some ugly jewelry to me." She tossed it over to Hunter, "Better luck next time." Then she turned to Lothor, "Can I take a monster down to Earth? I want to do something to keep my mind off this."

"You know the rules," Lothor replied, "I need a battle plan."

"Thanks, dad," Raven said, she smirked at Hunter and his brother, "Later, minions."

Angel giggled at the brief glimpse of outrage on Hunter's face. She didn't exactly care for the Thunders, but a part of her thought that might be because her father had trained with the Winds, and whenever he had told her bedtime stories about Earth, all of the bad people had been Thunders. She relaxed, letting her thoughts drift back to those days, when she'd been Angel Raven, the rescued and adopted child of Cateyla and Lothor, the Warlord's daughter. That was when Marah and Capri were her aristocratic cousins whose dad worked for the UAE, and her grandfather was a Warlord-Prince and she had trained as a Ninja under her father's watchful eye and learned about the galaxy at her mother's knee. It had been five years of an idyllic fantasy, no Zurgane and Choobo, just the human guards and occasional alien, a mansion on a small moon in the heart of their territory.

Angel shuddered, remembering how it had all come crashing down when she was thirteen. Her mother, Cateyla, had been a local asteroid racer and a good one. She had gone to the meet on her own, Angel had been sick and the Warlord called away last minute as someone encroached on his territory. After winning her race, and setting a course record, Cateyla had gone out with some friends to a small bar on a small mining planet. Someone had bought her a drink, which Cateyla had refused. The man had been so angry at the rejection that he'd followed her, and when she was alone, he had attacked her, leaving her dead in an alley.

 _**After the funeral, her father had come to her to tell her a new story.** _

_**"Angel," he said, sitting on the edge of her bed, "you have asked me many times about why I left Earth and I would not tell you. It is time for you to know, because it has something to do with how your mother died. When I lived on Earth, I was known as Keya Watanabe and I had a twin brother named Kanoi. We were as different as our elements, Earth and Air. When we were in our final year of Ninja training a Samurai came among us. Samurai are not like Ninjas, they have certain abilities that Ninjas would never use, abilities that are without honor. The Samurai, a woman named Miko, bewitched our Sensei into letting her train at the Academy. I thought my brother felt as I did, that Miko was a danger to our school, but he did not. The source of Miko's dark power was an amulet. I tried to explain to my brother the danger she had brought, but it turned out he already knew. Kanoi used the dark Ninja powers to knock me unconscious and he dressed me in a novice's uniform. As we were identical, he was then able to don a similar uniform in an attempt to take the amulet for his own dark uses. When he failed, he took me to Sensei and accused me of trying to steal the amulet."** _

_**"But you didn't," Angel protested.** _

_**"No, I didn't. My claim of innocence was ignored and I was cast from the Academy and banished from the Earth. I can no longer use my true name that is why I am called Lothor. One day, I hope to return to Earth and prove that my brother is the true dark ninja. That is why I am now a warlord, because I will need that strength. My brother's reach is growing, it was his man that took your mother from us and I fear he will try to hurt you."** _

_**"But, why would he want to hurt me?" Angel asked.** _

_**"Because you are my daughter in all ways but blood," the Warlord said softly, he brushed some of Angel's hair from her face. "Raven, my child, I must ask you to do something that will be hard for you and painful."** _

_**"What?" Angel whispered.** _

_**"I am planning to send you away to school," the Warlord murmured, "Aurin is a planet far from the coalition, and it is unlikely that Kanoi has even heard of it. The Collegium there is very good and will prepare you to be my Heir and maybe even second in command."** _

_**"For how long?" Angel asked, staring at her father wide eyed.** _

_**"Until you complete your schooling, or the danger is passed," the Warlord replied, "I do not know how long that will be."** _

_**Angel nodded and sat up straight, "I'll go," she said, proud that her voice only shook a little, "I'll learn everything and I'll come back and help you take care of Kanoi. With the two of us, there's no way he can hide his evilness from the galaxy."** _

_**The Warlord kissed her forehead, "Thank you Angel Raven. Get some sleep now."** _

_**Angel watched him walk across the room, "Father," she said finally.** _

_**"Yes?" The Warlord asked, turning to face her.** _

_**"Do you think Kanoi had anything to do with what happened to me?" Angel said softly.** _

_**He smiled and came back to hug her, "I don't think so, little Angel. Even Kanoi would not fall that far."** _

Angel jerked out of her memories with a cry, when she opened her eyes, she found herself sprawled on concrete, in a courtyard. There was an odd, dead space in her mind, her doppelganger was unconscious; "It's time to finish this," a voice said, calling her back to the world outside her mind.

"Wait," Angel said, sitting up, she glanced around at the…concrete building, this was one of the places Lothor hated for them to fight in because his sensors didn't work. Her eyes fell on the trio of Power Rangers and she scrambled to her feet, "Shane, its Angel, not Raven. I told you about the spell. She's unconscious, but I don't have much time. There are things, the morphers, Lothor has morphers. Two of them bonded, but the third didn't take." She groaned and fell to her knees as Raven began to wake up, "Ask Watanabe…ask him…about…" she fought to get the words out, "ask him about child slaves."

Then Raven asserted herself and Angel fell through the darkness to her purple sanctuary, hoping that she had managed to say something that would make sense to them.


	8. Namaste

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Random guy is NOT random. We will see him again. Mostly because Angel did not live in a bubble at school, but also because of other things. If you feel the need to relate this to the series, it's still before Looming Thunder, however, Angel has already warned that Lothor has morphers so the Thunders won't be quite the shock that they were in the series. His name is pronounced 'Alec'.

Elek groaned to himself as his weapons console began to beep, someone was trying to get a missile lock on him. Automatically, he disengaged the autopilot and spun his ship, breaking the lock, but not stopping his forward flight. After a few moments, the attempt to get a lock stopped and his communications array lit up. He reached over and switched it on, "Namaste," he said quietly.

" _Pilot,"_ a lazy voice said, _"this is the Hyperwave, identify yourself."_

Elek grinned as he recognized the voice, " _Hyperwave,_ this is the Amaranth scout ship _Shadow Stalker,_ crew complement is one and a cranky AI. I am looking for a purple haired girl by name of Angel Raven."

" _Shadow Stalker,"_ Angel said, her voice warming, " _what are your intentions?_ "

"Well, my friend took off from school without getting her acknowledgement of graduation," Elek replied, "since she didn't say good bye either, I prevailed upon the good people at the Collegium to allow me to bring the acknowledgement to her on my way home."

There was silence for a long moment, " _Shadow Stalker, you are cleared to land in the stern bay. Please remain in your vehicle until the bay is pressurized. Someone will meet you in the bay to escort you."_

"Acknowledged, _Hyperwave,"_ Elek said. He took his ship around to the open bay and slipped in cautiously. His anti-gravs came on as soon as they detected the decking and it was easy to glide in neatly. As he began shut down, he watched the red light on the control panel until it turned green. He slid off his harness and headed out the back end and opened the hatch as soon as it beeped to indicate a secure seal. As he cleared the hatch, he heard the sound of two pairs of booted feet approach from the front.

Elek ducked under the wing as he slid his courier bag over his shoulder and found himself facing a pair of Power Rangers, one in dark red, the other in dark blue. "Namaste," Elek offered with a cautious bow, looking from one anonymous helmet to the other.

"If you would follow us," Red said, "we will escort you to the Bridge."

"Right," Elek said, "thanks. Lead the way."

The Blue Ranger turned and headed back, but the Red watched until Elek hurried to followed, clearly they weren't going to risk him wandering off.

As they walked, Elek darted little glances ahead at the Blue Ranger, not brave enough to open his mental shields all the way, but sorely tempted to find out what was going on. Between what Angel Raven had told him about the Warlord, his own research and the reports his brother had shown him from the Ranger archives, he had never expected to see two Rangers in the man's service. Especially not two that were so clearly _wrong._ He wasn't sure he could explain it, but there was something wrong with them, even in silence, he could feel something, it made him feel sick and uneasy.

Finally, they passed through a final hatchway and onto the bridge. The Blue Ranger cleared out of his way and Elek found himself hard pressed to keep his face blank. They looked like they were posing for a picture, for posterity perhaps. The man in the garishly hideous throne had to be the Warlord, complete with his mask. On the Warlord's right stood a black armored being with sword handles in his shoulder pads that made Elek wish he'd dared put his dagger in his belt and a green creature with a large white pack on his back and an aura of foolish innocence gone wrong. At the Warlord's feet were two girls he had seen in a photo of Angel Raven's, Mara and Kapri, the cousins. Finally, to the Warlord's left was Angel Raven herself, but she looked different, _wrong._ Elek scanned her in a heartbeat, noting that she'd followed through on the old threat to put a purple streak in her hair. Her skin was pale, made more so by the skin tight purple and black ensemble she'd chosen. His hand tightened into a fist, because he knew Angel _hated_ that type of outfit, the type that covered everything and revealed little. Angel had always preferred tight fitting, low hanging gray pants, heeled boots, and a midriff baring purple top with a silvery, mesh over shirt when she could wear what she wanted.

"Namaste," Elek said with a bow, "I am Elekdreadin of the Amaranth and a schoolmate of Angel Raven."

"Namaste, Elekdreadin," the Warlord said, "welcome to the _Hyperwave._ " He flicked his left hand, "I've heard stories about you from my daughter. Will you be staying with us long?"

"I cannot," Elek replied, "my family expects me home soon. I only wished to present Angel Raven with this," he drew the small plaque from his bag and activated the hologram of a star fighter on top. "Angel Raven, this is your confirmed license as a pilot and navigator."

"Thank you," Angel said and every instinct Elek had, all the ones that had been telling him something was wrong and several new ones, screamed at him. This was Angel, where was her joke? She had worked hard for her license, and had cracked jokes the whole time, why did she now act as if it was nothing?

Angel took the plaque from Elek and as their fingers brushed, her mind screamed at him, _Help-get away-don't go-don't stay-not me-don't see._

"Come on," Angel said, "I want to put this away, and I can take you back to your ship at the same time."

"Ok," Elek replied. He bowed to the Warlord, "Nice to meet you, sir."

"It's been a pleasure," the Warlord replied, although his tone said it was anything but.

Elek followed Angel off the bridge, and wasn't totally disappointed when she flashed him a grin, "Sorry about that," she said, "Father has been upset about the operation lately, it isn't going well."

"Ah," Elek said, "I'd wondered."

"I'm just trying to keep my head down while things are so tense," Angel continued, "I nearly made my tongue bleed instead of asking if I could borrow the ship."

Elek chuckled, "I expected you to do it anyway. Things like tension never stopped you at school."

"I know, but he's my dad, you know?" Angel gave him a pained smile as her hand brushed his own. _Traitor-betrayer-save me-help._

"Of course," Elek replied, struggling not to show any emotion at all.

"This is me," Angel said, she indicated a hatch. "Mind staying here for my father's piece of mind? I'll be right back."

Elek snorted, "I've seen your room, Angel. I'm more afraid that the piles of junk are going to come alive and attack me then your dad."

"Funny, Elek," Angel said before vanishing inside.

Elek caught a glimpse of her room, noting that it was, in fact, clean and frowned. Everything was wrong here and it worried him. He leaned against the bulkhead beside her room and raised an eyebrow at the two black clad creatures standing at the end of the hallway. From the minimal emotional aura he was picking up, they were constructs or automatons, not fully human.

"There," Angel said, "now, do you want to go to the mess or what?"

"I have to go," Elek said, "I'm expected home very soon." He shifted to stand away from the wall and nodded down the hallway, "Besides, we've got chaperones."

Angel followed his look and wrinkled her nose, "Kelzacks," she offered, "Father's minions."

"Speaking of which," Elek said, "what's with the Power Rangers anyway?"

"Hunter and Blake," Angel said, she shrugged and started down the hall, "oh, they're Earthians. We're here after that _murkesko_ that killed mom. Apparently, he killed their parents too, so they _allied_ themselves with Father to deal with it. The _murkesko_ has tricked a couple of Rangers into protecting him so it's really taking us longer than expected."

"Angel, if the Rangers are against the Warlord," Elek began, alarmed.

"The _murkesko_ has an identity here of being innocent," Angel said. "He's been murdering and framing others for his work for a long time. The Rangers think he's innocent and we haven't exactly had a chance to explain things to them."

"What if the Warlord is wrong?" Elek said quietly.

Angel stopped and shoved him up against the wall, her hand closing on his throat, _sorry-help-sorry-wrong,_ "This being," she spat the word out viciously, "is the one who stole me, Elek, and would have seen me as a pretty little pleasure slave. I've seen the proof with my own eyes. His assassin killed my mother and framed my father for crimes he did not commit." She squeezed briefly, _sorry-need someone-find someone-Elek-help-sorry,_ then let him go. "Don't tell me he is innocent of all crimes."

Elek swallowed and rubbed his throat, "All right, I won't."

Angel nodded sharply, then turned and started down the corridor again. Elek followed her after glancing back to see that the so-called Kelzacks were still following them. In the depth of his mind, behind his strongest shields, he wondered if they were chaperone, guard or spy. As they reached the hanger, he decided that it did matter.

They entered the hanger and walked over to his ship,, ducking around the far side to stand by the airlock. Angel held out her hands, "I'm sorry, Elek. I'm just frustrated that this is taking so long."

Elek smiled and deliberately opened his shields as he put his hands in hers, "It's alright Angel. I survived finals with you for three years, I'll survive today."

Skin firmly touched skin, _Elek-help-Blue Bay Harbor-Shane_ _Clark_ _-Red Ranger-save me-look-skate-park-skateboard-find-help him-help me-help Thunders._ Angel brushed her lips against his cheek and then broke the connection, her dark eyes locked on his, a tiny spark of hope glimmering deep within. "Come see me again," she said, "when this is over, won't you?"

"If I can," Elek replied, stepping back, "I maybe busy," he tilted his wrist slightly so that the miniature comm. activated and he tapped the button that would open the hatch, "Family business and all. You can come see me though, now that you're officially a pilot."

Angel laughed, "I'll highjack the ship and follow you."

"You do that, I'll keep an eye out for you," Elek replied and stepped into the airlock. He watched as Angel moved off and the door swung shut. By the time he made it to the bridge, she was already safe beyond the door to the hanger. As he strapped himself in, the light flicked to red, indicating that the doors were opening. In moments, he was able to back out of the hatch and fly off, activating his hyperdrive as soon as he had clearance.


	9. Friend from Afar

Shane frowned as he followed Tori into Ninja Ops, Cam was sitting at the super computer doing something involving the image of a blond haired man, "What is it," Dustin asked from behind him, "did you find a killer video on YouTube to share with us?"

Cam turned, "Not exactly, Dustin." He typed a command, making the video full screen, "This is Elekdreadin of Amarantha, an old friend of Angel Raven and a Ranger-Elect. Elekdreadin, these are the Wind Rangers, Shane Clark, Tori Hanson and Dustin Brooks."

The man focused on Shane, his blue eyes intense, "Namaste, Rangers," He bowed his head slightly, "I thank you for taking time to meet with me."

"You're friends with Angel?" Shane blurted out. He felt Dustin's shoulder brush his own, when he glanced at his friend, the yellow ranger had an odd look on his face.

"Correct," Elek replied, "we attended the Aurin Collegium together for three years, she is my best friend and near enough to a sister as well." He glanced down for a moment and adjusted his black and yellow tunic slightly, almost nervously.

"Then why are you calling us?" Dustin said, when everyone looked at him, he waved his hand slightly, "No offense, dude, but she's not exactly playing on the side of the good guys."

"That is precisely why," Elek said, "something is wrong. I am a psychic, it is a common trait of my people. Specifically, I am a telepath and Empath; that is, I can sense thoughts and emotions when I am around others and unshielded, or in close physical contact. Today, I came to see Angel Raven because she had left the Collegium at the behest of the Warlord, her father, before her final tests were properly evaluated. I brought the official copy of her completion and certification as a pilot navigator." He paused, "You must understand, I have spent three years in close company with Angel. We have done many things together and I have learned the feel of her mind as well as I know my twin. Today, I spent time in the company of a woman who was both my best friend and she was not. Something happened."

"We are aware," Shane said quietly, he cleared his throat, "we were made aware of Angel's predicament, as well as that of two others."

"Then why have you not done something about it?" Elek demanded.

"Because we do not know how to reverse it," Sensei announced, arriving on the super computer consol with a neat flip, "Lothor, the Warlord, he has used the very dark powers that saw him banned from Earth to create a mental doppelganger in Raven's mind that controls her and leads her to fight against us."

"The Warlord was truly banned?" Elek asked.

"Indeed," Sensei replied.

"Angel told me he was framed," Elek said, "that it was part of why they were attacking Earth. She says she has seen proof of this, and that the man who murdered her mother was hired by the one they seek to fight and finally that Angel's own history came about because of that man." He paused, "She also told me that the Rangers that serve the Warlord do so because the same man killed their parents."

"That's not possible," Tori said.

Shane glanced over at Dustin, who shook his head slightly. Angel had managed to warn them about the Thunder Rangers, but not their identities. They had suspected that whoever the Rangers were, they were Lothor's other targets. It sounded like that theory was about to be proved right.

Elek lifted his hand, "I know that. Angel does to, or she did. She told me about her mother once, how she was murdered in what was essentially a random act of violence. I don't believe the rest of it because of what I was reading off her at the time. Whatever has happened, Angel still exists, and I have no doubt that she is fighting for her freedom in any way she can." He paused and sighed, "She is not psychic as I am, but she is trained to deal with psychic intrusions. I trained her myself."

"She's broken through before," Shane offered, "she has showed up at night a few times and once she got control back when we knocked her unconscious, but she's never been sure of her control. It's always been for a moment or two then she's gone."

Elek nodded, "Then what ever it was that created the doppelganger is too strong for Angel right now."

"Some spells," Sensei said, "grow stronger when they are cast in groups of three. We know that the spell on Angel has two other hosts, the Thunder Rangers."

"That's why they felt off," Elek exclaimed, "I can't believe I didn't see it at first." He looked away for a long moment, "Yes, a spell times three would be too strong for an ungifted, albeit trained, person to defeat for very long. There has to be a way to weaken the spell, if only one of the three had true abilities, I could…" Elek trailed off, then sighed, "No I couldn't. I have to go, I'm almost home. I just wanted to see if I could help in any way. I hope I did."

"You aren't coming to Earth?" Tori asked.

"I cannot," Elek replied, "I have to go home to help my people. One of our Rangers died and I need to be there for the ceremony to select his successor."

"I am sorry for your loss," Sensei said.

"Thank you," Elek said. "I hope that you will be successful in freeing Angel from her curse."

The screen went blank.

"Ok," Dustin said, "did we learn anything from that?"

"Yes," Shane said, "we learned that we have to free all three of Lothor's spell people, but that it will be hard. We already knew that, but it's nice to have confirmation."

"We have also learned that there are people who care for Angel Raven," Sensei said quietly, "and who wish to see her freed unharmed."

"I wonder who is waiting for the others," Dustin murmured.

Shane clenched his fists in reflection to the sudden clenching of his heart.


	10. Storm Rising

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm playing with how the Rangers use their elements, i.e. how their senses are affected by their element. Also, I acknowledge the bad pun, I needed a moment of amusement.

_Angel slipped into his bedroom, her worry evident as she stood watching him walk out of the bedroom. "Angel," Shane said, grabbing a battered t-shirt and pulling it on as he crossed the room, "is everything ok?"_

 _Angel held up her hand before he got too close, the loose sleeve of her purple shirt sliding down her wrist as she reached up to hook her hair behind her ear. "I don't have much time," she said, wrapping her arms around her stomach, absently smoothing the purple fabric of her shirt. "It's about to begin, tomorrow, the next day, I'm not sure."_

" _What?" Shane said, "What's about to begin?"_

" _He's about to let them go," Angel said, "you talked to Elek, you know what is coming. The storm is here, Shane." She shifted her stance, fingers plucking at the waistband of her dark gray cargos, "I can't stay. I have to go. Be strong, Shane, and good luck." She all but threw herself out the window; by the time he reached it, she was gone._

"Shane!"

Shane jumped and looked up from the magazine he'd been staring at since he'd first gotten to Storm Chargers, "Tori," he said, "what's up?"

"I've been trying to get your attention for five minutes," Tori said as she sat down beside him, "What's going on?"

Shane glanced around, checking for who was in hearing distance, then leaned closer to Tori, "Angel came by last night," he said, "and left a very cryptic warning."

"What kind of warning?" Tori asked.

"She said that something was about to begin," Shane said, "That 'he', I think she meant Lothor, was about to 'let them go'."

"Let who go?" Tori asked.

"Not sure," Shane said, "but she mentioned us talking to Elek, and that a storm was coming."

Tori tilted her head as she thought, "Well, we know Lothor has those Thunders," she began.

"Tori, Shane!" Dustin called as he walked over, a happy grin on his face, "There you are," he gestured, "come on, I have some people I want you to meet."

"Dustin," Shane said.

Dustin glanced over his shoulder, and then moved closer, "Shane, I have some people that you _really need to meet."_

Shane stared at him for a long moment before his brain finally caught up, and he blinked, because how often did Dustin try to be subtle, _or how often was Dustin successfully subtle?_ He stood, "Sure," he said, catching Tori's elbow and helping her up.

Dustin grinned, "Great," he turned and hurried back into the main part of the shop, then turned back to them, then away, finally moving to stand between two young men in motocross gear. "Shane, Tori, this is Hunter and Blake Bradley," he said, rocking back on his heels, "Hunter, Blake, my best friends, Shane and Tori."

Shane studied them as he finished his approach, letting a smile come to his face even as he felt his heart sink. _Hunter_ was aptly named, being a tall, blond haired man with a dangerous smile. The hand he extended was rough and strong, but Shane was relieved to find that he didn't feel the need to squeeze as they shook hands. He breathed lightly through his noise and turned away as he sneezed. "Sorry," he said, and sneezed again.

"Bless you," Hunter said, amused.

Shane shook his head, "Sorry," he repeated, "nice to meet you, though."

"You to," Hunter replied with a slightly challenging jut of his jaw.

Tori yelped, and Shane jerked, "I'm so sorry," Tori said, "I must have gotten a static charge from the couch," she smiled up at Blake as she gestured over her shoulder. "I didn't mean to shock you."

Shane gave Blake a quick once over as he completed his turn; y _ounger than Hunter, Asian, with a cocky yet charming smile._ As Blake's eyes swept over Tori, Shane felt his gut clench, "That's ok," Blake said, "I guess you could say, meeting you was shocking."

Shane coughed to cover the snarl he really wanted to utter. He stepped forward and offered his own hand, deftly sliding his shoulder in front of Tori, "Nice to meet you to, Blake."

"Right," Blake said.

"So, how do you know Dustin?" Shane asked, stepping back; _forcing Tori away from Blake._

"We're motocross riders," Hunter said, "we met down at the track."

Shane nodded, "I see," he said calmly, "here for the meet, then?"

"Actually, we're looking for a new home track," Blake said, "ours was shut down."

"Shame," Shane replied, he sucked some air between his teeth as he glanced at his watch, "welcome to Blue Bay Harbor, then. Tori, Dustin, we're going to be late."

Tori nodded, "Right."

"Let me grab my bag, I'll be right behind you," Dustin said.

Shane followed Tori out of Storm Chargers; Tori eyed him for a moment, "What was that all about?" She asked.

"I don't know," Shane said, glancing over his shoulder, "but maybe that storm warning was about the Thunders."

"You think?" Tori asked as she opened the driver side door.

Shane moved around to open the other door and slid in, "I know this," he told her, leaning close, "Dustin doesn't smell like ozone after he trains at the track."

"And Kelly started using that anti static spray stuff after the balloon thing," Tori replied. "Besides, as cute as Blake was, I don't appreciate being undressed with a look."

The back door opened and Dustin climbed in, "Did you feel it?" He asked as he slid over the seat to land between them.

Tori started the van, "You think they're our Thunders?" Shane asked.

"I do," Dustin said, "it was weird. When I touched Blake's hand, I knew. Whatever Lothor did, I could feel it."

"What do you mean?" Shane asked.

"He's blank," Dustin said after a long moment. "They both are. I can't read them like I normally do."

Shane frowned at Dustin, "What does that mean?"

Dustin sighed, "I can't really explain, Shane. You'll have to ask Sensei, he can explain it better than I can."

Shane glanced over Dustin's head at Tori, who caught his eye for a brief moment before looking out the window. As he leaned back, Shane wished, for a brief moment, that things could be normal again.


	11. Thunder Unleashed

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is the reason I'm posting Warlord's Daughter over here before it's complete. For some reason, fanfiction.net won't let me log in.
> 
> I meant to have the explination of Dustin's ability to 'read' people in this chapter, but it didn't work out. Instead, you get Winds meet the Thunders.

It wasn’t often that Raven actually deigned to fight the Rangers.  She wasn’t stupid, she knew that even using the dark powers her father taught her, there was little she could do against three morphed Rangers.  When she did fight them, she always had a monster and Kelzacks to back her up.  Still, there was something to be said about facing her opponents one on one and testing her strength against theirs.  Today, her assignment was to hold the Rangers in the quarry until the Thunders got there, so she indulged herself and set the Kelzacks on the Blue and Yellow Rangers while she went up against the Red Ranger on her own.   
It was glorifying in a way that fighting anyone except her father never was.  He met her every move, blocked her attacks, counter attacked perfectly, and when she produced her sword, he proved to be an even better opponent.  As she blocked an overhand swing, she smirked at him, “You fight well.”

“I’ve had a lot of practice,” Shane replied, pulling back and launching a second attack.

 

  
“If you want, I could speak to my father,” Raven said, feinting to the left.  “Lothor is always looking for warriors who can handle themselves in a fight.”

“Sorry,” Shane said with a grunt, “I won’t fight for a conqueror.”

“But you’ll fight for a murdering, child stealing dark ninja,” Raven said.

“Sensei isn’t like that,” Shane said, “he would only fight if there were no other way to protect Earth.”

“So he says,” Raven taunted.  “As loudly as possible, no doubt, to drown out the screams of his victims.”

Shane huffed a laugh as he blocked a chest strike, “Somehow, I don’t think Lothor would call himself a victim.”

“Maybe not,” Raven said as she broke off and backed up a step, “but what would you call an eight year old sold to a pleasure slave trainer, especially a trainer who liked to make sure that pretty, little children never grew up?”

“Perhaps you should look a little closer to home for the source of that one,” Shane replied.

A faint hint of ozone reached Raven and she caught a flash of yellow in the corner of her eye, it was time.  “Maybe you should talk to someone  else who knows what your Sensei is capable of,” Raven said as she backed away, lowering her sword.  “How does it go?  Oh yes,  ‘if it looks like a duck, and quacks like a duck, it’s more than likely a duck.’”  She smirked as she passed out of reach and watched as the sky opened up around the Rangers.  “Have fun!”  She called, meaning it for the Thunders, but keeping her tone light enough that the Winds might think she was mocking them.  Before she’d gone three more steps, she was caught up in a teleportation beam and on her way back to the ship.

xxXXxx

 

Shane often wondered about his insanity, usually when he had fallen for one of Dustin’s schemes, but every time he fought Angel’s alter ego, he felt himself lose just a little bit more of himself.  Still, he learned something every time they fought in close contact, and today, he learned that Raven was a skilled swordswoman.  Sword fighting was Shane’s favorite part of being a Ninja, truth be told.  There was something clean about fighting an opponent with a sword, an honesty that most forms lacked, especially when you went up against someone who really knew what they were doing.  Raven, lithe, supple Raven, who was shorter than Dustin was, knew what she was doing.

Still, Shane kept waiting for her monster to show up, even as she spat her poison about the Sensei.  Raven never fought without a monster as back up, usually some unholy mesh of raven and angel that would have caused him to question his faith if he’d had any to begin with.  When she finally began to disengage from the fight, he took the moment of breathing space to collect his team, finding them similarly left by their opponents.

Then, the air seemed to hum around him, his hair stood on end and a faint touch of ozone slid through the filter of his helmet.  His chest constricted, as if his air was blocked, and tightness settled all over him, making him feel like he should curl up in a ball.  Before he could process exactly what all the sensations were, lightning struck the ground, and the backlash shoved him away.  A second, third, too many strikes to count lashed the ground around Shane and the Winds, missing them by inches, still close enough that they couldn’t miss the aftermath.

When they could no longer keep their feet,  they appeared.  Red and Blue Darkened to an extent that they hovered on the brink of black; the symbols of the Thunder Academy emblazoned on their chests.  “Who are they?”  Dustin asked as he lay on the ground, not quite ready to stand.  There was a pain filled yet detached quality to his voice that made Shane worry for his friend.  Dustin only had that tone of voice when he was seriously concussed.

“They’re Thunders,” Tori muttered.  Her voice was sharp, if pain filled, and she was making a move to actually stand.  Reassured that Tori was mobile, if not unhurt, Shane found it a little easier to stand as the two Rangers approached, their feet in an eerie but surprising unison.

“I see you’ve heard of us,” Dark Red announced, “then you know why we’re here.”

“I know you’ve been brainwashed,” Shane replied, as he stood between his recovering teammates and the threat.  “I know you think Sensei Watanabe has somehow caused you irreparable harm.  I know that you persist in accepting Lothor’s delusions, even though a part of you, that which makes you a true ninja, knows that Lothor’s actions are without honor.”  He took a deep breath, “I can only hope that when the time comes you will remember the true strength of a ninja lies in personal honor, not vengeance or glory.”

“ Lothor’s delusions,” Dark Blue said incredulously.

Dark Red laughed bitterly, “I would have said it was the reverse.”

“If Lothor’s the good guy,” Dustin said, his hand coming to rest on Shane’s shoulder, his voice even more detached than before, but less pained.  “Then why does he need to use spells to ensure loyalty?”

Instead of answers, the Thunders unleashed the lightning yet again.


	12. Silver Intruder

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First, a reminder, I am looking at how the Rangers' elemental abilities work, and I'm making my own interpretation of said abilities. Action writing still isn't a skill I excell at, but I tried to provide some analyzation here, (mostly for my word count...) Also, yes, I know, another OC, but he's important, like, really really important. Also, whoever figures out Shane's threat gets a thousand internets and a zen hug.

Angel shook her head as she watched the fight, as exciting as the sword play had been earlier, this was even more so. The Yellow Wind Ranger, she never could remember his name, was still standing, blocking the Thunders' lightning from striking the Blue and Red Rangers. She squinted, wishing the view screen were better, because it looked to her as if he were  _grounding_  the power. "What's he doing?" Raven asked, glancing at Lothor.

Lothor grunted, "He's an Earth Ninja, he's grounding the Lightning with his own element." The Warlord shifted in his seat, "I warned them." Angel noticed that he touched the yellow band on his undershirt before he straightened, turning to Zurgane, "Prepare a monster, Zurgane. They might need back up."

Angel frowned, but couldn't prompt Raven to ask the question. Apparently, it pushed the boundary on the unquestioning obedience he'd instilled in her doppelganger.

Looking back at the screen, the Thunders had stopped their elemental attack in favor of a more conventional one. Here, the Yellow Ranger had dropped back, giving the lead to Red. In moments, Yellow had paired with Blue to tangle with Navy, while Red and Crimson faced off. Crimson was a strength fighter, he had the reach on Red and was putting it to use. Red favored a similar style, but used more speed, darting in and out with each attack. They were evenly matched for the most part.

Navy, on the other hand, was in trouble. A good fighter with a liking for blitz attacks and hitting with surgical precision, he found himself up against Blue, a Water Ninja who moved with the grace and speed often associated with her element. It wasn't that she blocked his attacks, it was that she wasn't there for the blow to fall. She moved like a dancer. Yellow, on the other hand, showed very little of the traits of Earth. He rarely stood his ground or took on full body blows, instead, he moved. Unlike Blue's easy grace, Yellow was more deliberate. He didn't shift his stance to avoid a hit, he dodged. His hits, the few that he actually landed, looked solid, with great follow through.

Suddenly, Yellow and Red switched targets. Angel stared as the two new combinations went to work. Yellow faced off against Crimson, and here was where Yellow's style really came into effect. Like before when it had been Lightning against Earth, Yellow held his own.

Red and Blue against Navy, on the other hand, was even more equal than before. They shifted around each other like three dancers on a stage.

Raven yawned, "This is boring," she announced, "I'm going to get some simulator time in while those two are playing with the Rangers."

"Very well," Lothor said.

Angel sighed as Raven left the room. She heard the door close and wondered what Raven was up to, it wasn't like her to act like that. Not that Angel would have ever hesitated to pull that sort of trick. Something happened, later, Angel would have said it was as if something had latched onto her and something else had grabbed Raven and pulled. Two voices screamed in linked agony as pain ripped through them. Angel felt as if her soul was being ripped in two, and when Raven lost control of her body Angel wasn't quick enough to take control and flee. Angel gripped her head as she fell, unable to control her screams.

xxXXxx

Shane stared as the two Thunders vanished, the screams they'd uttered had been horrifying, as if they were being torn in two from within. "Sorry about that," someone said, "I didn't expect that to be so dramatic." Shane spun, ready for another fight. "Be easy, Red Wind."

A Ranger stood behind them, a Silver Ranger. His uniform consisted of the traditional spandex in pewter gray, over that was a shimmering cloth of silver worked with a blue crest. His gun belt held the tunic in at his waist. He was tall, well built with an aura of  _masculine_  that left no question as to what gender he held. "Who are you?" Shane demanded.

"This may not be the place," the Silver Ranger said, glancing around, "Is there someplace safe we can go?" Shane glanced at his friends, "I do not meant your hideout," the Silver said gently, "only a place that is secluded and hasn't been the site of a Power Showdown."

Shane nodded, feeling relief unfurl in his belly, "There's a beach," he said gesturing over his shoulder. He glanced at Dustin, then Tori, "The sparring cove."

Tori nodded sharply, but Dustin didn't react, he had his head tilted as he studied the Silver. "Dustin," Tori said, grabbing his arm, "sparring cove."

"Right," Dustin said, sounding dazed. He turned and streaked off, Tori right behind him.

Shane frowned, because whatever was wrong with Dustin wasn't the concussion he'd originally thought it to be. "I can take you," he began, turning back to the Silver.

"If your teammates have journeyed to this 'sparring cove', I can teleport to their location easily," the Silver replied.

Shane dipped his head, more than a nod, but not a bow, "I will see you there."

The Silver inclined his head and vanished in a stream of silver sparkles. Shane glanced around, "Are you sure this is the smart thing to do?" Cam asked, breaking the radio silence.

"Not really," Shane replied, "but he's a Ranger, I think."

"He has that sort of power signature," Cam replied, "but he just appeared. I didn't detect him at all until the Thunders screamed."

"Then I'm not leaving Dustin and Tori to face him alone," Shane replied, "Dustin's acting weird."

"Dustin will be fine," Sensei announced, "he has simply discovered a new aspect of Earth."

"Right," Shane said, "keep the line open, Cam. If I call Dustin 'Waldo' then I want you to pull us out of there. If the teleporter isn't up to all of us, start with Dustin, then Tori, then me."

"Right," Cam replied.

As Shane streaked to the cove, he realized that it was the first time Cam had accepted an order other than a need for Zords without talking back or outright refusing.

The Silver, Tori and Dustin were all waiting for him, but he simply stopped between the Silver and his team. "Who are you?" Shane demanded.

The Silver reached up and took off his helmet slowly. Reddish brown curls fell from the helmet, some fell over his shoulders, and the rest went down his back. There were silver curls mixed in, looking almost metallic in the sun light. Then the helmet cleared his face, revealing a young man, about their age, with a triangular face dominated by large, silver eyes, a snubbed, button nose, light pink, thin lips twisted in a shy smile and a chin that jutted forward stubbornly. The boy tucked his helmet under his arm and bowed to them, "I am Jerridan of Amarantha, Silver Amaranth Ranger. Elek sent me."

Shane pulled off his helmet and gestured for Tori and Dustin to do the same. "My name is Shane Clark, Red Wind Ranger. These are my teammates, Tori Hanson, Blue Wind and Dustin Brooks, Yellow Wind. What did you do to the Thunder Rangers?"

Jerridan bowed, "It is an honor. As for the Thunder Rangers, that was unexpected and unintended." He glanced down at his helmet, "My intention was to simply look at the spell on them. Although I am first a Silver, my secondary is Purple. I hoped that I could release the bonds of the spell quickly as has happened in times past."

Shane inclined his head, "Thank you," he said quietly, "and please pass my gratitude to Elek, however  _next_  time you want to conduct an experiment please let us know you are on our planet beforehand."

"You do not want my help," Jerridan asked.

"Let me put it this way," Shane said, "if you come to Earth unannounced again, I will not greet you as a Ranger, I will hunt you as a ninja."

Jerridan bowed, "As you wish, Red Wind Ranger." He slid his helmet on and vanished.

"What was that all about," Tori asked.

Shane looked at Dustin, "You heard it to," Dustin said softly.

"I heard something," Shane agreed, "let's get back to Ops and talk this over with Sensei."


	13. Alone

Raven was heading to the Bridge to take a shift at the com when heard them. Hunter and Blake, the Thunder Rangers, were standing in a corridor talking. She held herself still and listened. "Yeah, the Amphidor attack was a bust," Blake said, "she dropped me off at a hospital. I thought I had her."

"Then we need a new plan," Hunter replied.

"Yeah, but what?" Blake asked.

Raven grinned, sounded like the Thunder boys were having trouble. She turned away and took a slightly different route up to the Bridge, wondering if she could do anything to make their troubles even worse. When she entered the Bridge, she found Lothor waiting for her, "Father," she said with a warm smile, "I thought you were in the control room."

"Raven," Lothor replied, "I need you to do something for me."

"Anything, Father, you know that," Raven replied.

"The Thunders are having problems finding the holographic portal," Lothor said, "if you think of something that will work, let me know."

"Yes sir," Raven replied and kissed his cheek. "Love you, Dad."

"I love you to," Lothor replied.

Raven took a seat and brought up the long range sensors as her father left, _Help the Thunders?_ Raven mused as she studied the readings, _Why?_

The sensors beeped an alert at her and Raven blinked, there was a ship approaching. It's transponder identified it as an Amaranth scout ship, not unlike the one Elek had flown a few weeks back. Raven brought up some of the other scanners and quickly confirmed the presence of two people bearing the Power were headed for Earth. She stared at the screen, and the readings for a long moment before she hit the alert button that would bring her father running.

The fact that he showed up in mere minutes told her he hadn't gone all that far, "What is it?" He asked.

Raven smirked, "Visitors," she brought the sensor readings up onto the main screen. "Looks to be that annoying Ranger-elect and a friend." She leaned against the screen and tilted her head, "I was thinking they might be able to do our dirty work for us."

"Oh?" Lothor asked.

"The Thunders need to know where the Academy is. Even if we haven't decoded that transmission the Ranger-elect sent out last time, we know he contacted the Winds. We capture that ship, keep the other as a hostage and send the Elect down to draw the Winds out of their hiding place. If the Thunders follow the Elect, they'll see the portal." Raven said.

"What does the Other say?" Lothor asked.

"Haven't heard a word," Raven said, "not since that, whatever it was." She shuddered a little at the memory of the sudden, agonizing pain that had tore through her two weeks past, the pain that had left her 'original' self in a deep coma.

"Very well then," Lothor said finally, "go get them. I'll be standing by for whatever you need."

Raven grinned at him and headed for her ship, on the way, she stopped a Kelzack and passed on an order for the drone ships to be prepared. Then, she settled herself in the cockpit of her ship. Almost reverently, she trailed a hand over the awakening controls. It had been a while since she'd taken the ship out and she'd missed it.

When the ship was ready, she slipped out of the hanger and brought the drone control online, letting the ships take a formation around her before she headed for the scout ship that was cresting Saturn. "Amaranth Scout," she said over an open comm channel, "this is _Aftershock,_ you have entered our territory, please state your intentions."

"Angel?" A hesitant voice asked, it was the Elect, Elek.

"If you do not state your intentions," Raven said, "you will be fired upon."

" _Aftershock,"_ a new voice said, "this is the Ranger scout _Haleiwa,_ and we are looking to make a landing on the third planet, Earth, to consult with the Wind Rangers."

Raven closed her eyes for a moment, a triumphant smirk dancing on her lips, " _Haleiwa,_ the Warlord requests your presence on the _Hyperwave._ "

"In what capacity?" The new voice said.

"I am not aware," Raven said, "I am acting on orders to make the request."

For a long moment, the only sound on the comm was a faint hissing from the planetary radiation. " _Aftershock,_ " the new voice said, "we would be honored to assist the _Hyperwave_ in whatever way we can."

"Thank you," Raven said, "I will escort you to the landing bay." As she turned her ship, Raven shook her head at the naivety of Rangers. She closed the ship to ship with the _Haleiwa,_ and contacted the _Hyperwave._

"Angel Raven, what are you doing?" Lothor asked.

"Bringing them in," Raven replied, "all I had to do was ask, dad. I figured asking wouldn't hurt and it was the most efficient use of resources. Besides, it actually makes the next step easier."

"What's the next step?" Lothor said.

"I need the Thunders to set up an ambush in the corridor from the forward landing bay to the control room. They'll probably want to do this morphed, but either way, we need to subdue the Rangers. Once the Rangers are properly restrained, I'll make them an offer." Raven replied, "Don't worry, Dad, I'm fine and I won't get hurt."

"I'll tell the Thunders to get in position," Lothor replied after a moment.

The landing bay was empty when she entered, and she watched as the _Haleiwa_ landed to her right, close to the outer doors. As soon as the pressure was equalized, she swung out of the cockpit and ran over to where Elek was disembarking. "Elek!" She cried, smiling, "It's good to see you again, and I didn't have to go to Amarantha to do it."

Elek smiled tightly, "It's good to see you to, Angel," he replied. He turned as a young man in a red tunic came down the ramp, "Angel Raven, may I make known to you Kendarian, the Red Amaranth Ranger. Kendarian, this is Angel Raven, the Warlord's daughter."

Raven smiled and bowed to Kendarian, "It is an honor, Ranger Kendarian."

"The honor is mine, Lady Angel Raven," Kendarian replied, "I have heard about you."

"All good, I hope," Raven said cheerfully. She gestured, "If you'll come with me, the Warlord's waiting." She turned and headed out of the bay.

They were almost halfway there when Raven saw the familiar crimson uniform in a cross corridor waiting for them. She smirked as she passed them, because really, this was too easy. A grunt behind her made her stop and turn, and her smirk slid into a sneer as she found that their guests were already subdued. "Angel," Elek said, betrayed.

"Angel's gone," Raven told him, "if I were you, I wouldn't plan to see her again. Ever."


	14. Delaying Tactics

Raven went with Elek to Earth, standing out of range of the comm's visual recorder as Elek made contact with the Wind Rangers, most specifically with Cameron, their Ranger Technician. "Earth Rangers," Elek said calmly, "this is Elek of Amarantha. We met a few weeks ago when I was traveling through the Sol System on my way to Amarantha."

"I remember," Cameron said, "what brings you by Earth again."

"After I returned to Amarantha," Elek said, "I was confirmed as the Yellow Amaranth Ranger. Once on the team, I requested of our Silver Ranger if he would look into what had been done to Angel Raven and the Thunders. He went to Earth, and returned almost immediately claiming that he had been barred from visiting your planet." Cameron nodded slightly. "I came to hear the other side of the story from the Earth Rangers, if that is possible, in a face to face meeting."

Cameron frowned, "I'll have to speak with the Rangers, just a moment."

The screen went blank, and then the golden logo of the Winds began appeared and began to rotate in the center of the screen. "You sent the mystic?" Raven said, "I guess I have to thank you, then. Angel was beginning to get annoying."

"Funny," Elek said bitterly, "I imagine she said the same thing about you."

Cameron appeared again, "I will send you the coordinates for a meeting place off the Academy grounds."

"Standing by to receive," Elek said.

"The Rangers will meet you there," Cameron replied and killed the connection.

"How rude," Raven muttered. "Send the coordinates to the Thunder Rangers," she ordered after a minute, "and bring us in."

The landing was rougher than Raven expected, but Elek was able to bring them down in the appropriate clearing easily. The Thunders were waiting when Raven left the ship. "Well?" Crimson demanded.

"They'll be here soon," Raven replied, "I suggest you get out of sight."

The Thunders vanished and Raven found a good vantage point in a deadfall. She settled in moments before the Rangers appeared. The radio she was using to keep an ear open to the Thunders came alive at the same time, "We have the holographic entrance." Crimson said, "We're going in. Keep the Winds distracted."

Raven pressed the button on her transmitter that would create a beep on their end of the radio, to signal that she had heard and couldn't talk.

In the clearing, Elek and the Winds had finished their pleasantries and were coming to business. "Yes," Shane said, "I kicked that Silver off planet."

"Why?" Elek asked.

"He showed up unannounced," Shane began, "and made no attempts to contact us. One minute we were fighting the Thunders, next they were on the ground sounding like something was ripping their souls to shreds. When that Silver did announce himself, he wasn't even concerned. They were just experiments to him. I don't know how you do things on Amarantha, but this is Earth and people are people. That Silver could have been experimenting on Lothor and I'd have kicked him off the planet. You don't make someone scream like that just because you can, and then show no remorse. Angel's just a girl, and the Thunders aren't much older and none of them had a choice in all of this."

"I see," Elek said tightly.

"I do appreciate that you wanted to do something," Shane continued, "but this wasn't the way to do it. I wasn't joking when I told your Silver that if he ever came back to Earth unannounced and I found out about it that I'd track him down. I maybe a Power Ranger now, but I was a ninja long before that, and I'll still be a ninja when Lothor's gone."

"Don't worry," Elek said, "no matter what Kendarian says, Jerridan will never return to Earth. I didn't send him here to hurt any of them." He bowed, "I apologize; it was my fault he even came near here. I thought he could do something to help."

"I forgive you," Shane said, "just, don't try to help anymore, ok? We'll save Angel and the Thunders."

"You're going to have to do something," Lothor said over the radio, "clearly the Ranger isn't going to be able to stall them for much longer."

Raven tapped back confirmation, stood up and snapped her fingers, teleporting herself to the clearing; the Thunders clearly needed more time. "Well isn't this cute," she said haughtily, "I think I'm going to be sick." She paused and sighed, "No worries, false alarm." She held up her hand, letting energy coalesce into a glowing purple ball. "Either way, I'm bored, let's fight." She tossed the ball of energy at their feet and smirked at the way they jumped out of the way.

"Angel," Shane said.

"Wrong girl," Raven said, "I'm Raven." She lunged forward and kicked him, "You might want to remember that. Kelzacks!"

WDNSWDNS

Shane blocked the kick and glanced around, Elek was hovering by his ship, watching worriedly. "Don't worry," Shane told him, "if you want to leave, go ahead."

"Yes," Raven said, "run away little Ranger. I'm sure you have something to _pick up_ on your way home."

Shane stumbled back as Raven landed a punch to his sternum, and focused on the fight.

It was the strangest fight Shane had yet to have, it was almost like Raven was stalling them. There was even a time or two when he would have been ready to swear that she was sparring and not actually fighting. Then, just as suddenly as she appeared, Raven moved out of the fight, "Well, Daddy dearest calls, Rangers. As much as I would like to keep fighting you, I have to run." She waved at them cheekily and vanished in purple sparkles.

Shane glanced around, noting absently that Elek had left, and that the Kelzacks had been defeated. His morpher chirped, "Go for Shane," he said as Dustin and Tori came to stand close to him.

"Come back to Ninja Ops," Cam said, sounding tired and defeated. "We have a problem."


	15. Sensei Missing

Ninja Ops was trashed. That was Shane's first impression when the doors came open, there were books everywhere, the things on the table were broken or on the floor, and Sensei's motorized cart was upside down. Cam was sitting on the table, cradling his arm. "What happened?" Dustin asked, looking around.

"The Thunders happened," Cam replied, looking up at them. He looked as if he'd been through a battle all on his own, one eye was blackened and beginning to swell, his lip was split and he kept his head tilted a little out of respect for the large bruise purpling on the side of his neck.

"Are you ok?" Tori asked, kneeling beside him.

"That Crimson bastard broke my arm," Cam said bitterly, holding it up a little, "and unlike you three, it doesn't heal instantly."

"We have to take you to the hospital," Tori said, glancing from Cam to Shane and back again.

"No," Cam replied. He tried to straighten up, and was forced to hiss and curl up around his arm again. "I'll be fine."

"Cam, your arm is broken," Shane said. "We aren't doctors."

"Yeah," Tori agreed, "I may be certified in first aid, but that doesn't include broken bones."

"Dude, where's Sensei?" Dustin asked from where he was setting the motorized habitat right side up.

Shane felt his gut tighten, "The Thunders have him," Cam said with his eyes fixed on the floor. "Crimson attacked me as a distraction and Navy kidnapped Dad."

For a long moment, Shane's mind froze, then it kicked into gear, "Cam, do you have a way of tracking your dad?"

"As long as they don't get out of range," Cam replied, "or I can hack a military satellite of some sort." He jerked his head carefully to the super computer, "I can follow the energy in his aura with the computer. It's always been unique, and ever since the accident it's been even more distinct than before."

"Maybe I can help?"

Shane whirled, hands lifting to a defensive motion, then relaxed, "Elek," he said.

Elek nodded, the yellow ranger toyed with the jewel around his neck as he looked from Tori to Dustin and finally to Shane. Shane frowned when Elek couldn't meet his eyes, "This is my fault. I want to make it right."

"How is it your fault?" Dustin asked, coming up to stand close to Shane. He spoke calmly and soothingly to Elek, but the hand on Shane's arm was firm, a silent warning to Shane.

"I didn't come to Earth alone," Elek said softly, "the Red Amaranth Ranger came with me, he wanted to have words with you, Shane, about threatening our Silver. When we got here, we were accosted by Angel Raven. She said the Warlord wanted to meet us, and that he needed help, and from the number of drones with her, saying no wasn't an option. So, we boarded the _Hyperwave."_

"The what?" Tori asked as she came up on Shane's other side, blocking Elek's path to Cam.

"Lothor's ship," Elek replied, "it's called the _Hyperwave._ As I said, we boarded and were ambushed by the Thunder Rangers; Angel Raven and Lothor forced me to come down and call you three out, to 'finish the mission'. If I didn't, they would kill Kendarian, my Red. If I in any way indicated I was being coerced, they'd kill him. When I couldn't stall you, Angel Raven did. I got Kendarian back, he's waiting for me on our ship."

Shane closed his eyes for a long moment, "Go," he said finally, "leave Earth." He opened his eyes to a haze of red as anger closed his throat, "I never want to see any of your people on my planet again."

"Before I leave," Elek said, "there is something I can do to help."

"What?" Shane snapped.

"I'm a Yellow Amaranth Ranger," Elek replied, "that means I'm a healer. I can heal that broken arm much faster than it would heal naturally."

"Do it," Cam said.

"Cam," Shane said, glancing over his shoulder at the other man.

"I can't help you like this," Cam replied bitterly, "I can barely think straight from the pain. If he can heal me, we can find my father that much faster."

Shane looked at Tori, who nodded slightly, then Dustin, who shrugged a little. "Fine," Shane said, "but this doesn't mean we'll ever welcome you back with open arms." He stepped back and out of Elek's way.

Elek nodded and knelt in front of Cam, "Let me see it," he said, reaching out gently.

Cam held out his arm and hissed when Elek put his hand over it, "Hurry," he muttered.

"This is going to feel strange," Elek replied. Yellow light began to flow out of his hand and around Cam's arm, where it turned a verdant green. Then the yellow light began to crawl up Elek's arm while the green began to surround Cam. Finally, Shane had to turn away as the two became too bright to look at, one sheathed in verdant green, the other in vibrant yellow. Then the light was gone and Shane could look at them again.

"There," Elek said, tiredly. "I gave you extra energy, you should be able to keep going until you've saved your father, but you're going to fall asleep in the next seven to twelve hours either way. Healing uses both our energy any way I do it. When you feel tired, don't fight it, just go to sleep. Remember, you broke both bones in your forearm, and even if they're healed, they're still weak. Go easy on the arm for a while. My recommendation is to do nothing more than typing or basic use until you stop feeling tired, and then give it another few days before you start training again or heavy lifting." He stood up, "I know that this is a very poor way to make up for what I helped bring about, but it is what I can give. I hope that you can rescue your father, and that things go well in your war with Lothor."

"Thank you," Cam said quietly.

Elek smiled tightly and pulled a small device from his pocket and pressed a button, he vanished in a flash of yellow light.

"You ok?" Shane asked.

"Fine," Cam replied. "We're going to need the mobile command center, Crimson said something about the Mountain of Lost Ninjas."


	16. Freedom

"May I ask a question," Raven asked as she draped herself over her father's throne, idly watching as Lothor's people danced and celebrated the capture of Kanoi.

"What?" Lothor asked, passing her a glass of _Lydian._

"Crimson and Navy are taking the rat to the Gem of Souls, right," Raven said, blowing away the steam and taking a sip of the cold beverage.

"Right," Lothor replied.

"The Gem of Souls is in the Cave of Souls on the Mountain of Lost Ninjas, correct," Raven continued and winced as Marah practically folded herself in half under the limbo bar.

"Right," Lothor said.

"All of the Ninjas who died in combat," Raven said, "or through treachery guard the mountain."

"Raven, you know this, what is the point? I want to celebrate," Lothor snapped.

"Crimson and Navy's parents were Thunders that you defeated in battle," Raven said. "Can they use the Gem of Souls to release the spell?"

Lothor stood up and turned, "Zurgane, you have the bridge," he snapped.

"Yes sir," Zurgane replied with a salute.

"Raven, you're with me," Lothor continued before vanishing in a black/yellow teleport beam.

Raven sighed and put her glass down, then snapped her fingers, allowing the purple sparkles to surround her. They stood outside a cave, from the raised voices, the Winds and Thunders were in there. "Let's go," Lothor hissed.

They stepped in as two ghosts faded away, "Come back," Navy whispered.

"What a sight," Lothor drawled, "the Thunder Rangers, crying for their mommy."

"I knew he was a momma's boy," Raven added, smirking at Hunter, "but then, I also knew they were pawns and minions."

"What did you _do?"_ Hunter demanded.

"It's called a war," Lothor said, "people die. Unfortunately for you, those people included your parents."

"You lied to us," Blake snarled.

Lothor waved his hand, "If the Wind and Thunder Academies hadn't decided to track me down, I would never have had to kill them. From a certain point of view, Kanoi Watanabe did kill your parents."

"Stop it," Shane said, " _you_ murdered them."

"Actually," Raven mused, "they were spies, so he executed them." She started forward, "But either way, we'll take the rat now."

"He's a guinea pig," the Winds snapped in chorus.

"And we're not going to hand him over either," Hunter added as he and Blake shifted into defensive stances.

"Then we'll take him," Lothor said, firing a beam of dark ninja power at the Rangers.

There was a shout, a flash of green light, and Raven threw herself at her father. She collided with him just as the light hit them and she couldn't contain a scream of pain as it consumed her.

….

"Did anyone catch the number of that bus?" Dustin was saying when Shane's head quit ringing.

"No," Tori replied.

Shane looked up, surprised to find himself still standing. Dustin and Tori were picking themselves up, but seemed mostly ok. As for the Thunders, Blake was helping Hunter stand. "Angel Raven!" Lothor cried.

Shane snapped his head to where Lothor knelt, half holding Angel, "What," he began.

Lothor looked up at the noise, hatred in his eyes, "If she dies," he said, "this planet will never again bare life." Then he picked up his daughter and vanished in a beam of purple edged darkness.

"What just happened?" Shane asked out loud, figuring somebody had to say it.

Hunter coughed nervously and lifted his hand to reveal the fragments of the Gem of Souls, "I tried to block Lothor's attack with this," he said, "it reflected back at him and Raven took the reflected attack on her back." His face reflected the confusion he felt, "She jumped in front of him."

A faint swooshing sound was all the warning Shane got before Sensei landed on his shoulder, "Thunder Rangers," he said, "how do you feel?"

Hunter dropped his hand and looked over at his brother, who shrugged slightly, "I feel like we did something _really_ stupid," Hunter said.

"Dude," Dustin said, "You were brainwashed by Lothor, you couldn't help it."

"Brainwashed," Blake said.

"It was a spell," Tori said as she came up on Shane's left. "The Spell of Sheng Lei."

"It is now broken," Sensei said, "between the Gem of Souls and your parents' energy you are now free. That is also explains what happened to Angel Raven. The Gem returned not only Lothor's attack, but the spell energy it drained from you two."

"What does that mean for Angel?" Shane asked.

"I do not know," Sensei replied. "I can only hope that she will be ok. For now, I would like to see Cam, he was badly injured."

"All right," Shane said, he tilted his head at the Thunders, "You two are welcome to come with us. Cam's got this gel, it doesn't smell all that good but it'll help with the soreness you're probably feeling."

"Sure," Hunter said after another look at Blake, "thank you."

"How is Cam?" Blake asked.

Shane started out f the cave, over his shoulder he said, "Arm, ribs, concussion, assorted bruises. But he's ok now. Angel's friend Elek Healed him as a way of repaying us."

"Yeah," Hunter said, "sorry about that. I mean, it was mostly Raven's idea, but we went along with it."

Shane threw a glance back at the Thunders, who were flanked by Dustin and Tori. "It's ok," he said, "you were under a spell, and Elek was coerced. Doesn't mean I'm going to let any of those damn Amaranths on Earth again, but I understand."

"Did they get away alright," Hunter asked.

"Elek seemed fine," Dustin offered, "but we didn't see his teammate."

Shane concentrated on a tough part of the trail, but kept half an ear to the other Rangers. "Tori," Blake said.

"Yes, Blake," Tori replied.

"I'm sorry," Blake said, "I attacked Amphidor because I thought you'd show me where the portal was."

"We knew you were the Thunders," Tori replied, "that's why I took you to the hospital. If I hadn't of known, or you weren't evil, I probably would have."

"How did you guys know," Hunter asked.

"Angel told Shane," Dustin said, "about the spell, and the Rangers. It wasn't until we were at the track that I knew you were the Thunders."

"How?" Hunter asked.

"No offense," Shane said, "but you guys _smell_ when you spend a lot of time morphed." He tossed another grin back, "It's like ozone or something. Why do you think I'm standing upwind?"

"He's right, sort of," Tori said. "Blake shocked me that first time, and, well, every other time we've gotten in close proximity."

Dustin shrugged, "I just could tell."

"It is your Elements," Sensei announced, "reacting to one another. Shane, as an air ninja, feels the reaction of lightning on air, and equates it as a smell of ozone. Tori, as a water ninja, experiences it as a shock, because of the fact that water is an excellent conductor to lightning."

"What about you," Hunter asked, "what did you feel, Dustin?"

"Nothing Elemental," Dustin replied, "Earth grounds Lightning. It was something else."

Shane frowned, but Tori clearly understood, "It's that Heart stuff Sensei talks about, right?"

"Yeah," Dustin agreed.

They reached the semi, and Cam fairly flew out the back end, "Dad!" He cried.

Sensei jumped from Shane's shoulder onto Cam's outstretched hand, "I am pleased to see you are well," Sensei said.

"I'm glad you're in one piece to," Cam replied.

Watching them, Shane realized how hard all of this must be on the irritable computer genius. Here, he'd almost lost his father and all he could do was talk to him. Shane knew if he were in that position, even with his strained relationship with his own father, he'd hug him. A warm arm over his shoulder startled him, until he realized that Dustin had thrown his arm over his shoulders, "You ok, dude?" Dustin asked softly.

"I think I hit my head," Shane replied, "I'm getting introspective."

Dustin chuckled softly, "Just checking."

"Cam," Shane said, "this is Hunter and Blake Bradley." He jerked his head at the Thunders, "The Gem of Souls have freed them from Lothor's spells." Watching as Hunter and Blake slowly joined them, Shane continued, "Hunter, Blake, this is Cameron Watanabe, our Ranger Tech specialist and all around genius."

"Hi," Blake said.

"I'm sorry," Hunter added, blurting it out quickly, "about your arm, and your ribs, and hitting your head like that, and kidnapping your dad."

Cam regarded them for a long moment, then nodded once, sharply, "Next time, you won't have it so easy," he replied and started back into the truck. At the top of the ramp, he turned, "Come on," he said, "let's see what we can do about those bruises you've acquired, and I'm going to need the tech specs for your Zords while we're at it." Then he vanished inside.

Shane shrugged Dustin's arm off and slipped Hunter heartily on his shoulder, making the other ninja jump, "Don't worry," he said, "that's Cam for 'I forgive you'." Then he headed up the ramp, behind his cheerful masking, however, he couldn't forget how limp Angel had been in her father's arms.


	17. Homecoming

Angel was in her room, she knew this, and she was alone. Not just physically, but for the first time in weeks, she was alone in her head. She had spent hours walking her mind, making sure there was no hint of her doppelganger. Now, she opened her eyes and sat up, looking around her room. It was cleaner than she would have kept it, but that was just a sign of what she had gone through. Angel drew her legs in and tucked them under her as she wrapped her arms around her waist.

There was only one thing she could do, and Angel shivered at the necessity. She had to go home, she had to see her grandfather and find out if he sanctioned Lothor's actions. Then she had to send Elek an apology, she had been horrible to him, forcing him to take part in Lothor's schemes.

Finally, Angel made herself stand up and get dressed, pulling on her favorite dark gray pants and long sleeve, purple shirt. After sliding on her ship boots, Angel grabbed a small mesh bag and packed some clothes and the few things she couldn't leave behind in it. She wasn't sure she would be coming back here, and as she slipped the holocube with images of her mom into the bag, she knew she couldn't leave it behind. That done, she popped open the floor level ventilation shaft. With practiced ease, she crawled in and pulled the grate closed behind her. She had been using the ventilation shaft to move around and spy on the rest of the ship for Shane. She felt a twinge of regret that she couldn't stay and keep watch, but she couldn't support Lothor if her grandfather said otherwise.

The lower hanger bay was empty when she there, leaving her free to wiggle out and run for the small personal craft she had bought before Lothor's spell had stolen her love of flying. She scrambled up the craft's side and popped open the storage bay to drop her bag inside for the journey. Sealing that, Angel slid back down the side of the craft and moved around it, running the preflight check. That done, she scrambled up the side again and popped the hatch to let herself into the cockpit where she continued the preflight.

She was bringing up the engines, ready to go, when she faced her final problem. She didn't have the codes to open the great doors, and she couldn't activate them manually without risking her own life. Angel laughed ruefully, a memory she'd buried from Raven surfacing. "Thank you KO-35," she muttered and let herself out of the cockpit. The manual controls for the door had to be brought up on the terminal by the door and then a button had to be pushed. She brought up the controls, and then ran back to the ship. Half hanging out the hatch, Angel focused on the wrench in her hand, telekinetically sending it across the room to hit the button. As the klaxon began and the hanger doors groaned prior to opening, Angel sealed the hatch and strapped herself in to the cockpit.

She turned off her comm as the doors opened all the way and headed out into space, activating her shield and cloak as she eased out of the _Hyperwave's_ shield and headed out of the system. In moments, she had slipped into hyperspace, heading home.

…

Entering the Ialandian Sector was easy; she simply dropped from hyper, gave her id to the security net and turned off the cloak. Landing on Ilan was even easier, all she really had to do was give her ID to the space port computer and she was given a priority landing dock near the palace. By the time she'd finished preflight and collected her gear, her grandfather had arrived, dressed in his casual robes and surrounded by guards.

"Angel Raven," he said as she approached.

"Grandfather," Angel replied and hugged him.

"What brings you here?" Keoni asked as he stepped back, "I thought you would be with your father."

"I was," Angel said, "I had to leave." She glanced at the guards, "To come see you."

Keoni nodded at the warning in her glance, "Come up to the palace, little one. I'm sure you have a great many stories about life outside our sector."

"More than you know," Angel said, hefting her bag on her shoulder.

They took a hover craft to the palace, and Angel couldn't help but be delighted at the numerous familiar sites, and the latest fashions. "You're going to spend your allowance on clothes, aren't you," Keoni said, watching her study the people.

"Probably," Angel replied, giving him a wink and a grin, "it's better than buying another gun."

They laughed at the tagline to the old joke, but soon fell silent. That silence surrounded them until they were ensconced in Keoni's private study, on the couch. "My dear," Keoni said, "what happened?"

"What you know about Father,"Angel asked, "I mean, about why he left Earth."

"Lothor was framed by his brother," Keoni said, "for practicing dark magic."

Angel shook her head, "I've learned a few things on Earth, Grandfather; not the least of which is that he _is_ a practitioner of dark magic."

"Can you prove this?" Keoni asked softly.

"He used it on me," Angel replied, "and to others, a threefold spell." She looked down, "He wanted people he could be utterly sure of, who would be loyal and not betray him as his brother did. It was broken by a stone known as the Gem of Souls, which siphoned the strength of the spell from the other two when they touched it. Lothor attempted to attack them and I- I threw myself between him and the attack. When I woke up, the spell was gone."

"I had known something wasn't right," Keoni said, "when I gave Lothor leave to seek out his brother and deal with him. I should have suspected it when he promoted Zurgane to his second."

"How did that happen?" Angel asked, "I mean, I knew Choobo was an idiot, but how did Zurgane get caught up in things?"

"He saved Lothor's life," Keoni replied, "and it spiraled from there. Angel, are you sure about your father."

"One hundred percent," Angel agreed.

Keoni bowed his head, "Then the law is quite clear, my granddaughter."

Angel let Keoni take her hands, "I know," she whispered.

Keoni summoned his advisors, all of whom gave her a speculative glance before focusing on their King. "As I speak," Keoni said, "Lothor is no longer of my house; the title of Warlord is stripped of him. There shall be no welcome for him in my sector. For the vile practice of Dark Magic, Lothor is _banished._ " Angel struggled not to cry, to keep herself emotionless. "For using vile Dark Magic on our granddaughter," Keoni continued, "Lothor is _banished._ For using the name of the Ialandian Sector to engage in unlawful conquest, Lothor is _banished._ May his name be stricken from the annuals and his good deeds buried in the mists of history."

Angel felt an inner relief that none of the advisors let more than relief and shock show. They had all be uneasy about their Lady marrying a Human although none of them had spoken in front of her on the matter. "What of Angel Raven?" Akuma asked, giving her a long look.

"Lady Angel Raven is Katanya's daughter of soul," Keoni replied, "and my granddaughter of soul; she will always be welcome in my home. Her father's treachery will cast no shadow upon her."

"But she is also Human," Demaya said.

Angel couldn't help the laugh that bubbled out of her, " _Meshkula,_ " she said, "don't you ever pay attention? I'm Eltarean, with a little bit of Human thrown in. We did those tests when I was _eleven."_ It was always thrilling to see Demaya left speechless. "Grandfather," Angel continued, standing and approaching, "Lothor continues to attack Earth, and he will not stop. I do not know the entirety of his plan, but his monster maker spoke of 'feeding the Abyss of Evil'. I would go back to Earth to aid the Power Rangers who stand against him, with your permission."

Keoni stared at her for a long moment, then nodded, "Granted," he said simply. "Gather what you need, I will prepare a writ authorizing it, and offering our aid through you to the Earthian Power Rangers."


	18. Alliance Begun

It was depressingly easy to find the Thunder Rangers, Angel Raven discovered, they had returned to the Thunder Academy. One of the few things she'd been able to do before the spell was to download the Ninja Academy locations from the mainframe, even if she'd never been able to erase them. Even with the EM field around the Thunder Academy, she was able to locate and land on a cleared plot. As soon as she cleared the field, however, she adjusted her own cloaks and shields to be visible by the Rangers. By the time she'd landed, they were watching her, fully morphed.

Angel Raven opened the back door of the ship and walked out with her hands raised, "Please," she called, "do not attack."

"How do we know we can trust you," Crimson shouted.

"Because I am no longer spelled," Angel Raven replied.

"Come out of the ship then," Navy said.

"I cannot," Angel Raven said, "even with the EM field, Lothor will detect me. I came here to find you, to offer my help in defeating Lothor."

"Why don't you go see the Winds then?" Crimson asked.

Angel Raven tossed her hair and stared at them, "After what I did, after what I helped Lothor do? They would no more accept me than they would accept Choobo."

The two Rangers exchanged a look, then powered down as they walked closer to the ship, "I'm sorry for what happened," Angel Raven told them. "I didn't know."

"How couldn't you, he's your dad," Navy said.

"No," Angel Raven said, "not anymore. He's been banished from the Ialandian Sector and cast from my Grandfather's house. As I have no blood ties, it is easy to claim our souls incompatible and shed that aspect of our relationship." She glanced upwards, even if she couldn't see the ship, "He'll get the message any minute now," she couldn't keep the dark glee from her face, "I wonder if we can hear his screams of outrage from here."

"What do you mean?" Crimson said.

"First," Angel Raven said, "I'm Angel Raven of Ialandian, you may call me Angel."

"I'm Hunter," Crimson said.

"Blake," Navy added.

"It is an honor to know you in freedom," Angel said, "you should come onto the ship. I don't have half the power Lothor does, and it took me ten minutes to find you. My ship has excellent cloaks and shields."

The two Rangers came aboard cautiously, and Angel wandered back in towards the galley, "So," Hunter said, "what is your story?"

Angel poured herself something to drink, "I don't know my family history," she said, "although I know that I am Eltarean with a small amount of Human blood." She held up a blue and red glass and the Rangers nodded. "My first memories were of a slave compound where pleasure slaves are trained. The Warlord rescued me from there." She handed the drinks over, "I was estimated to be eight years old by the medical staff. The Warlord and his wife, Cateyla, adopted me. I was thirteen when Cateyla was murdered and the Warlord sent me away to school." She looked at them, "That was three years ago, and Lothor has changed beyond all recognition. I think my mother held some of the darkness back, enabling him to be a good man, but once she died, he had nothing to keep him from going dark."

"What's Eltarean?" Blake asked.

"Eltare," Angel stopped, "Eltare is the birthplace of the Power Rangers in a way. The Eltareans were the ones primarily behind the push to create the Universal Morphing Grid, and their expectations have shaped it. Even now, they are the ones who train Rangers and create the majority of the morphers in use. That's why I can't use the Black Thunder Morpher, I don't have enough of the Human genome to channel the elements the way you Earthians do."

"But," Hunter began.

"We saw," Blake added.

Angel snapped her fingers, letting the purple sparkles swirl around her fingers, "I'm Eltarean, I have what you would call _magic._ Not a lot, I'm no _Akar'demare_ like Zordon, but enough."

"So how can you help us?" Hunter asked.

"Knowledge," Angel said, "technology, the resources of the Sector." She slid past Hunter and opened a storage bin, "My Grandfather wants Lothor dealt with. Since we don't have the authority to openly come into the Sol System, he sent me." She pulled out two small bands and turned, "It is easy to find you if one is inclined to look, these will mask your bio-signatures."

"Bracelets?" Hunter asked as he took one.

"If you slide it under your morpher, the chameleon abilities of the morpher will disguise it," Angel replied, she tilted her head and grinned, "or you can put it around your ankle."

The brothers slid the bracelets under their wrists as they exchanged glance, Blake then asked, "Why did your accent change?"

"What do you mean?" Angel asked.

"It used to be that you had an accent like Lothor, but now, I would almost say you had a French accent." Hunter said.

"Oh," Angel said, "that is because my doppelganger personality had Lothor's knowledge of English. I started learning English two years ago, before that, I spoke Ialandian and Eltarean. Now that the doppelganger has been destroyed, I have retained her knowledge of English as well as her memories, but my vocal cords are my own, and so my accent remains unchanged." She crossed her arms, hugging her stomach lightly.

"I see," Hunter said, exchanging another look with Blake.

"It is growing late," Angel observed, glancing at the clock for a long moment. "With the masking bands, you could go to the town to eat. I would like to stay here."

"Can't you wear a masking band too?" Blake asked.

"No," Angel replied. "I am the only Eltarean on the planet, if Lothor decided to scan for that difference, I would stand out like a, I believe the phrase is, like a sore thumb?"

"I'm sorry about that," Hunter said, he turned to Blake and laid his hand on his brothers arm and whispered something in his ear. Blake nodded when Hunter was done. "Look, why don't I go down to town and get a couple of pizzas. We can all stay up here and eat on the ship."

Angel smiled, "You don't have to Hunter."

"But we want to," Hunter replied firmly.


	19. Heroes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I always felt the story of Hunter and Blake's parents could be better, so I made it happen. FYI, ages. Cam is 23, Hunter is 22, Blake, Tori and Shane are 20 and Dustin is 18. Angel is 16. Hunter was ten, Blake was eight when their parents died. Angel wasn't adopted by Lothor and his wife until four years after the Bradley's death.

"How can you find the academies so easily?" Hunter asked as he looked over her shoulder.

"I downloaded it from the mainframe of Lothor's ship," Angel replied, "I couldn't erase the data, but I buried it. That's why we had to use such elaborate plans to find the portal." She brought up her HUD and pointed, "Besides, their EM field is designed to be undetectable to humans. Any decent scout ship can detect the field by the absence of data. A battle ship like Lothor has can just scan through it." She hovered near the academy, "It's one of the things that I can fix, if they'll let me. Hold on, I need to contact them."

This time, she used information she'd downloaded from Elek's scout ship to make contact with Cameron Watanabe. "Hello," the young man said, sounding confused and irritated.

"Cameron Watanabe," Angel said, "this is Angel Raven of Ialandian, I have with me Hunter and Blake Bradley. We are requesting permission to land on the academy grounds for a meeting of allies."

There was silence for a moment, and Angel wished she could activate the visual component on Cameron's side on her own. "Permission granted," Cameron said, "I'll send you coordinates."

Her computer beeped a moment later, "Thank you," Angel said, "we'll be landing in five minutes." She boosted her shields and cloak before slipping through the EM shield. The landing site Cameron was sending them to was not far from the doors to an underground bunker. "You'd think they'd close that," Angel mused.

"I know," Hunter said, "we just waltzed right in."

For a brief moment, Angel pictured the brothers dancing a waltz into the bunker, "Who led?" She asked.

"I'm sorry," Hunter asked.

"You said you 'waltzed right in'," Angel replied as she set down gently, "who led the dance?"

"It's a metaphor," Blake said, "for walked in without resistance."

Angel began her shut down procedures, "Someone left their sense of humor behind." She muttered, loud enough to be heard by the brothers. As she stood, three figures exited the bunker and Angel paused at her first sight of Shane since she'd been freed.

"Angel, how do you open the door?" Hunter asked.

"Coming," Angel said and hurried to the back of the ship to open the door.

They walked out and Angel set the door to close before heading for the bunker, "We need to get inside," she told the Wind Rangers, "I'm too noticeable if Lothor scans the planet."

They exchanged glances, but led the Thunders and Angel underground. Shane maneuvered things so that he was walking beside Angel, to her inner amusement, "Are you ok?" Shane asked.

"I'm free," Anna replied, "that's enough for me."

They entered a large room that clearly served as the Rangers' base; waiting for them was the Asian man Angel had seen on Elek's computer screen. "Cam," Shane said, "Tori, Dustin, this is Angel. Angel, this is Cam, our tech guru, Tori, blue Wind and Dustin, yellow Wind."

"Nice to meet you," Angel said, "I am Angel Raven of Ialandian, but you may call me Angel."

"Cam," Hunter said, with a slight nod, "Dustin."

"Tori," Blake added.

Angel tucked her arms behind her back, "First, I feel I must apologize for my actions on behalf of Lothor. Even before the spell, given the way I was raised, I would have been a part of the invasion."

"How were you raised?"

Angel blinked and gave the small rodent staring up at her from beside Cam a long look, "I was adopted and raised by Lothor," she said. "I assume that you are Kanoi Watanabe."

"I am," the rodent replied.

"My father told me that you were the one who was a true practitioner of dark magic, and you framed my father when he discovered the truth. According to Lothor, you are an evil man who hides beneath a veneer of goodness." Angel lifted her chin slightly, "Given my experiences at Lothor's hands in terms of dark magic, I find myself willing to question whether you arranged for the death of Lothor's wife, my mother."

"I assure you," Kanoi Watanabe said, "I have never sent anyone to attack Lothor's family. Working with Sensei Omino of the Thunder Academy, I have sent ninjas to find and observe Lothor. Two of whom, the Bradleys, were discovered and killed."

"Actually," Angel said, "I did some checking on that. That was another of Lothor's lies, one I didn't know the truth of because I was not yet on Ilan when it happened. I'm sorry, Hunter, Blake, I meant to tell you the truth before we got here, but it slipped my mind." She turned to look at the Bradleys full on, "Your parents were a part of my grandfather's personal guard. That year, there was an insurrection attempt by a group of young radicals. Dominic and Regina, as I knew them, protected my grandfather with their lives when the insurrectionists attempted to assassinate him. In going through the information we have on Ilan about Lothor, we discovered that he was behind the insurrection. As far as the Ialandian Sector is concerned, your parents are heroes who saved my grandfather. No one there knows that they came from Earth, or that they were there to spy on Lothor. I told my grandfather the truth when I discovered it, and he has determined that they will be honored with their true names. When we have dealt with Lothor, Keoni would be honored for you to come to the Ialandian Sector for the ceremony."

She smiled at the looks the brothers exchanged. It was worth it to have waited at home to find out what information could be uncovered about Lothor just to see the pride and amazement on their faces.

"I'm sorry," Cam said, "but who is your grandfather?"

Angel smiled, "The word we use, _Edar_ , doesn't have a direct translation into English. However, if you translate it to Eltarean before translating to English, the closest word would be King."


	20. Daughter No Longer

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I always felt the story of Hunter and Blake's parents could be better, so I made it happen. FYI, ages. Cam is 23, Hunter is 22, Blake, Tori and Shane are 20 and Dustin is 18. Angel is 16. Hunter was ten, Blake was eight when their parents died. Angel wasn't adopted by Lothor and his wife until four years after the Bradley's death.

Shane watched as Angel, Blake and Hunter vanished back into Angel's ship from Cam's supercomputer. "So we have an alien princess and two thunder ninjas who are our allies now," Cam said.

"Looks like it," Shane commented, "if the Thunders prove to be even half as useful as Angel was we'll have a better than average chance."

"We didn't before?" Tori asked pointedly.

"Before," Shane said, he swallowed, "before we had three very dangerous enemies helping Lothor. Now we have skilled and knowledgeable allies."

"It was well done," Sensei announced. "Forgiveness is a worthy trait to have."

"So we've forgiven them," Shane agreed, "now what?"

"Are we going to make Angel a Ranger?" Dustin asked.

Shane glanced at his friend, and then over at Tori, then Cam, and finally Sensei, "I don't think that's our call," he said, sensing Cam opening his mouth. "Angel doesn't identify herself as coming from Earth and we need to keep that in mind. She's from a place that is completely alien."

"Not to mention that we don't have any more morphers," Cam added. "The Thunders might, but we don't."

The monster alerts went off and Shane turned so he could see the screen as Tori and Dustin leapt to fall in beside him. "The quarry," Shane said, beating Cam to the punch. "Because we value piles of rock." He backed up for maneuvering and reached to start the morphing sequence.

In an almost gleeful unison, they shouted "Ninja Storm, Ranger Form!"

Morphed, Shane looked at Cam, "Contact the Thunders and invited them to join us. Angel to if she is so inclined." Then he launched himself out of Ninja Ops with Dustin and Tori close behind him.

Lothor was standing in the quarry, flanked by Zurgane, Marah and Kapri. "Where is she?" He demanded as Shane and the others lined up across from Lothor.

"Where is who?" Shane asked, although he had a really good guess who Lothor was looking for.

"My daughter," Lothor snapped.

"Didn't you get the message," Angel said as she appeared in front of Shane, "you don't have a daughter, Lothor."

"Raven," Lothor began.

"Not anymore," Angel replied, slashing her hand in a distinctive negation. " _Gelia natu simpara angel komera raven toderes."_

Shane stared of Angel's shoulder as Marah and Kapri gasped and exchanged long looks and Lothor took a step back, stunned. "Raven," he whispered.

"You don't have the right," Angel snapped in English. "Marah, Kapri, _delu komono adeyo."_ Turning, Angel tossed Shane a salute, "Sorry," she said, "Some things are better said in person."

Shane nodded, even if he still wasn't sure what had happened. "You'd better go," he told her, this probably isn't going to end well."

"Of course it isn't," Angel replied, "take care." She vanished in a shower of purple sparkles.

Lothor leveled Shane with a look of such pure loathing that Shane had to straighten his shoulders against an urge to grovel. He turned to Tori, "Think this is a bad time to mention that I wouldn't mind taking Angel out on a date?"

It was inane, idiotic and childish, but Shane couldn't help but feel satisfied when Lothor vanished with a snarl. Zurgane and Marah followed, but Kapri hesitated. "Take care of her, Red Ranger," she said then vanished.

"What was that about?" Hunter asked softly.

"Who knows," Tori said as Shane turned to face the two Thunders.

"Thanks for coming," Shane said, and offered his hand, "I appreciate it."

"Not a problem," Hunter replied.

The two Rangers shook hands.

 **...**

Angel was waiting in Ninja Ops when the Winds and Thunders showed up, arguing with Cam, "Look," Angel was saying, "I don't have an identity on this planet, but I know how to get permission. All I need is five minutes with your internet connection and I can get the ball rolling."

"Why not tell me what to do?" Cam said.

"Because I respect that this is a Class Two planet, meaning that Ranger Identities aren't shared unless the Rangers themselves choose to share." Angel replied patiently.

"What's a Class Two planet?" Hunter asked.

"Planet with rudimentary space flight," Angel said, "and some technology. Class Zero is primitive, no technology beyond fire. Class One is technology but no flight, Class Two is rudimentary space flight, Class Three is primitive sophistication, Class Four is near modern and Class Five is standard technology. As a Class Two, Earth isn't allowed to know the Rangers' identities on a general basis and little technology is released to the planet for reverse engineering, if and only if there are Rangers. I checked with Eltare before I came back, to find out whom the Rangers have been, because the Astros and Light Speed are known, but the rest aren't."

"How do you know all of this?" Shane asked, feeling overwhelmed with the information.

"Research," Angel replied with a bright grin, "I did some when I found out that," she paused, " _Lothor_ was from here. I did more when he summoned me here and the rest of it I did while I was on Ilan." She turned back to Cam, "So, can I use the internet or not?"

Cam sighed, "Fine, don't break anything."

Angel leaned over Cam and began to type rapidly. Shane watched as she brought up, "Google?" He said.

Angel laughed, "Google, as you know it, is a subsidiary of Google Galactic. I've had an account with them for years." She opened a blank email and began to type. Shane blinked, but he still couldn't read it. "I'm writing in Eltarean," Angel offered, "according to the Records on Eltare, this Ranger learned Eltarean during his active days."

"Why not just contact Lightspeed or the Astro Rangers directly?" Dustin asked, "Why do it this way?"

"Because the Earthian Astros are off limits as per their sanction restrictions and Andros and Zhane are out of touch anyways. The Lightspeed Rangers, well, the Records list them as being Apprentices, while this Ranger is a Journeyman First Class. Contacting Lightspeed would be like asking Dustin if I could become a Wind Ninja instead of Sensei Watanabe." Angel said.

"And you've lost me again," Hunter said.

Angel sighed as she sent the email, "Rangers are classified by their experience as Apprentice, High Apprentice, Journeyman Third Class, Second Class and First Class, Master Third, Second, First and Premier Master. You guys are all Apprentices because you've served on one team, in one color for less than a year. Only Zordon's Rangers on Earth have ranked higher than Apprentice. There are two High Apprentices, five Journeymen Third Class, three Journeyman Second and two Journeyman First. One of the Firsts is qualified for Eltarean Training, but hasn't applied yet." She stepped back, "Thank you, Cam, I appreciate that."

"Are you a Ranger?" Dustin asked.

"Me? No," Angel shook her head, "and I don't _want_ to be. I'm happy being a Sorceress." She paused and shrugged, "I can't use one of your Ninja Morphers anyways. I'm Eltarean, not Human, and I can't channel the Elements like you all do. I'm not Zordon to have," she paused frowning, "gigantic powers? No, large, no," she spread her hands, "I do not know how to say this."

"Perhaps extremely powerful?" Sensei offered.

"Yes," Angel grinned, " _Ha'tai,_ I am not extremely powerful as Zordon was. I do have enough power potential that I can, hypothetical, study to be a Ranger _menitor_ if I wanted."

"A what?" Blake said.

" _Menitor,"_ Angel said, "a person who shows how to do things."

"Mentor?" Shane suggested, "Like Sensei?"

Angel shrugged, "I guess. Anyways, I could be a _menitor,_ but I would have to decide in the next three or four years if I wanted to. I am growing still, and can handle the training."

"I have two questions," Cam said, "first, what did you say to Lothor and second, how is it that sometimes your English is perfect if accented and other times you have trouble finding words?"

"The second is because I have words," Angel said, "but I do not always know how to use them. I studied English, and Lothor gave me a stronger vocabulary. When I do not think, I know what I am to say, but when I must think on the answers I do not always know them. As for what I said, I told Lothor that my soul no longer found joy in being his daughter. It is a ritual for breaking an adoption. My grandfather has seen to the legal aspects, but I had to say those words to him. To my cousins, Marah and Kapri, I wished them well. Lothor and Mother adopted them after my uncle died. They must make the decision to leave Lothor. I do not believe they will. Uncle was a strange man with strong ties to the UAE from his mother. My mother and uncle had different mothers. That is why Lothor reminds Marah and Kapri that they are only family-by-marriage, because the relationship is distant."

Sensei inclined his head, "Now it is time for meditation training," he said, "Hunter, Blake, Angel, you are welcome to join us."

"Thank you," Hunter said as the Winds settled themselves around the table.

Angel hesitated a moment, then joined them. "Fair warning," she said, "I've been known to glow and spark. It won't hurt you but it is visually distracting."

Shane wondered if he was crazy to find himself still attracted to her.


	21. Little Sister

"Hey Angel," Hunter said as he walked onto the scout.

"Yes Hunter?" Angel asked as she skimmed over the text on the screen.

"What are you doing?" Hunter asked.

Angel hummed for a moment then looked up with a shy smile, "Cam's got me hooked up to the internet. That Ranger I contacted wrote me back."

"Yeah?" Hunter asked, wondering if he could sneak close enough for a look.

"Of course he was shocked to get an _email_ from an alien, but he's taking it rather well." Angel glanced at the screen, and then blacked it. "However, he has contacts and he'll get me some sort of an identity. I just need to give him a last name."

"Why a last name, I thought Raven was," Hunter trailed off as Angel gave him an amused smile.

"My name is Angel Raven, Hunter," Angel said as she stood up, "on Ilan, it is considered to be the height of rudeness to shorter a person's name without permission. That is why I granted you permission to call me Angel. Since that is how I was introduced to your employer, I do not consider her rude. However, as I said, Angel Raven is _my_ name; I don't have a family name." She headed towards him, "I need to speak with Cam."

Hunter stepped out of her way and followed her back off the ship. In the weeks since their alliance, Angel's words, with the Wind Rangers, Angel had brought the ship to the Wind Academy ruins. It served as her living space, and she let Hunter and Blake sleep there too. Hunter glanced around the blasted Academy grounds as Angel vanished into the bunker, Blake and Tori were finishing the run Sensei Watanabe had assigned them. "Hey Blake," Hunter called, "can we talk?"

"Sure," Blake said, "I'll catch you later, Tor."

"Right," Tori said.

Blake walked over easily, barely winded from the run, "What's up?"

"Angel heard back from her friend," Hunter said, "and all she needs for her identity is a last name."

"What about it?" Blake asked.

"I thought," Hunter began, and stopped, "how would you feel about having a little sister?"

"A little sister, you mean Angel?" Blake repeated.

"Just think about it," Hunter said. "Nothing needs to be decided today or anything."

"Right," Blake said, "I'll do that." He headed for Ninja Ops then stopped and turned back around, "Hey, Hunter?"

"Yeah Blake?" Hunter replied.

"People always ask how I handle having a brother who's a complete jerk," Blake said, "and you know what I say every time?"

Hunter shook his head, unsure of where his brother was going.

"I always ask them what they're talking about because this, your idea, it's more special than anything some of those idiots could think up." Blake grinned at him for a moment, then headed down into Ninja Ops.

Hunter wondered if it was too late to become a hermit.

…

When Hunter came down to Ninja Ops for training, his first sight was of Dustin. The dark haired Earth Ninja was meditating at the table again. Ever since the day they'd clashed in the quarry, Dustin had been acting odd. Sensei only said that Dustin had unlocked an aspect of his Ninja abilities and was learning to control it.

Dustin didn't say much of anything, seemingly distracted by whatever he was sensing.

Hunter settled down at the table, wondering where everyone else was. Just as he was preparing to ask Sensei, the monster alert on the computer went off. Dustin jumped at the sudden loud noise, eyes flying wide, Cam and the others came running from the back of Ninja Ops, heading for the computer. "All right," Cam said as he slid into his seat, "we've got a monster downtown."

"Angel?" Shane asked, looking over his shoulder at her.

"I'm back up," Angel replied. "I'll be there is you need me."

…

As it turned out, they didn't need Angel's back up. The extra assistance they got was in the form of Cam, the newly minted Green Samurai Ranger. As they celebrated their newest teammate, Hunter reflected that now would be a good time for a different question. Especially when Blake leaned on his arm and said, "I'd like to have a little sister, Hunter."

Angel was standing near the small library, watching the party with a certain aloof expression on her face. Hunter snagged a couple of sodas from the cooler Tori had produced and headed over, "Hey," he said quietly.

"Hi," Angel replied, accepting the drink he offered. "Is something wrong?"

"No," Hunter replied. "It's just, you know how you said you needed a family name?"

"Yes," Angel replied.

"Blake and I thought that, well, maybe you'd like to give them Bradley. I mean, we have common ground already and Blake and I both wouldn't mind a kid sister." Hunter said and stopped, because he really wasn't good at this.

Angel was quiet for a long moment, lost in thought, then she shook her head and laughed softly, "Thank you for your offer, Hunter." She took a sip of her drink, "I would be honored to be your sister."

Hunter grinned and hooked his hand under her elbow, "Then come join the party," he told her. "One thing you should know is that a Bradley never turns down a party." He propelled her into the middle of the group. "I don't mean to steal your thunder, Cam," Hunter announced as they came to a stop by Blake, "But we have a bit of an announcement to make."

Everyone fell silent, and Blake grinned. "What's going on?" Shane asked suspiciously.

"We've all talked it over," Hunter said, "and Blake and I decided were adopting Angel as our little sister. So everyone, I'd like you to meet Angel Raven Bradley, the third Bradley sibling."

Blake grinned and gave Angel a quick huge, "I'll be honest," he said, "I'm glad not to be the youngest anymore."

Hunter pointed at Shane, "That means you'd better be careful if you think you're going to come sniffing around my little sister, Clark."

They all laughed and relaxed into the peace.


	22. Tactics and Strategy

Life as Angel Raven Bradley was good, Angel reflected, except when Lothor got involved. As she watched the latest battle with Sensei, she reflected that something would have to be done. "Sensei," she said as the Rangers went to their Zords, "hypothetically, if I could transport myself and one other person onto Lothor's ship to rescue the students. Would Cam be the better option, so as to be able to trigger the mechanism while I cover for him or would Hunter or Shane be a good choice, so that I could puzzle the mechanism and they cover my back?"

"The father in me would say anyone but Cam," Sensei said after a moment, "but if you are as unfamiliar with the means of the students' captivity, he is the best choice. His technical skills are exceptional." He looked up at Angel with his nose twitching, "Could you do such a thing?"

"It's possible," Angel said after giving the question serious consideration, "Difficult, but possible. Lothor hasn't changed the shields to block me yet."

"Do I want to know how you know that?" Hunter asked from behind them as he led the team into Ninja Ops.

"Probably not," Angel replied cheerfully as she vacated Cam's chair. "So, to reiterate, I was asking Sensei if I should ask Cam to help me rescue the ninja students."

"How would we do that?" Cam asked.

Angel clasped her hands behind her back, "I would use my magic to teleport us to a secure location on Lothor's ship and then we would make our way to the students. Lothor hasn't blocked me, and there are places he never goes. There are no cameras in there, and a concealed method of travel is accessible with minimal fuss."

"You're sure of this?" Cam asked.

"If Lothor entered the room, or if the place was altered in any way, I would know. I tagged Lothor before he spelled me, and the room has been, as you would say, bugged since I arrived." Angel grimaced, "It's my room, I think he leaves it that way in the hopes I might spontaneously return to him."

"We need to talk about this," Shane said, "Lothor's going to need a distraction."

"What about Mara and Kapri," Blake added, "they're always showing up where they're not supposed to on the ship."

The Rangers began to talk at once and Angel sighed, then she created a small magical explosion. "We wait," she said, "we put the word out that Cam has the flu. Lothor spies on everyone outside of ninja ops, all we have to do is capitalize on that. Next time Lothor sends a monster, Cam and I go up to the ship and get the students. Mara and Kapri won't be a problem; they'll either be in the ops center, watching with Lothor, or on the bridge. Even if they do show up, I can handle them." She crossed her arms and smirked slightly, "I'm a pilot, not an idiot, and tactics and strategy was my favorite not primary class. I have two solid overall strategies and three back up plans. This isn't a whim; this is a proposal of a workable plan."

"Do you have anything written down?" Cam asked, "Blueprints or anything?"

"I can provide you with ship plans," Angel agreed, "the writing isn't in English, though."

"Fair enough," Cam said.

"What about your magic," Hunter said, "you get tired when you use it too much. Are you sure you can do this?"

Angel nodded, "I can teleport to the ship and back with Cam, it wouldn't be a hardship. Teleporting has different requirements than fighting magically; it's a single burst of energy instead of the near continuous drain required in a fight or with illusions. There is no guarantee if I have to use my magic in a fight though. The area where the ninjas are being held has an independent teleport station, though. We'll have to use that to get the ninjas back here anyways. I can send Cam back with them and steal a star fighter if it comes down to it. That's back plan A, by the way. Plan B is to hijack the entire ship and bring it down and Plan C is the one where we don't come back at all, but we take Lothor and Zurgane with us when we go."

"If you go, you have to come back," Hunter said, grabbing her arm, "you're my little sister; I'm not going to lose you now that I've found you."

Angel hesitated, and then hugged her brother, "That's the worst case scenario, Hunter. If we have to use plan C, Lothor goes with us. That's the most important thing, that we stop Lothor."

"The most important thing is that we survive," Hunter said, holding her tightly. Angel knew, however, that he understood what she was saying.

The silence of the room made the two of them step apart, with Hunter glaring at the staring Rangers while Angel smirked. "Tomorrow is Tori's birthday," Cam began.

"Which is where you're going to pick up your cold," Angel countered even as she leaned almost casually against Hunter, "if we're going to do this." She already knew the answer to that, and as Hunter's arm came around her shoulder, she prepared herself for the arguments that would soon be occurring.

After all, she had two Reds who tended to hover over her, a Blue who was still finding his feet as an older sibling and a father who worried about his son. All of them would need to be assured that she knew what she was talking about and all of them would need to see that Angel and Cam was the best pair to go up. Angel had to go either way, and while she probably could figure out how to free the students, she was stronger as a fighter. Cam would be better able to figure out the technology. She had been tempted to choose Dustin, but she wasn't sure how the Earth ninja would react to being abruptly separated from the planet he'd bonded with so recently. She'd learned in school that some magic-users did that, bond to their home planet, and taking them away from said planet with little to no warning would hurt them, or even kill them. She wasn't going to risk that with the absent minded yellow ranger.


	23. Victory's Price

Tori's birthday did not go as planned, what with the arrival of a Karmainian looking to bond with and transfer energy to Shane. While Angel and Shane weren't dating in the Earthian sense of the word, they did have an understanding about 'after Lothor' and Skyla tampering with Shane had left Angel seeing red. She did get some amusement from the fact that Hunter and Dustin took it in turns to see that she wasn't left alone with Skyla after she'd referred to the Karmainian as a desperate boyfriend stealer. Still, Shane had gotten the battlizer they were going to need so Angel could admit it wasn't a total waste of time.

The part where they faked Cam's illness worked as well. Lothor sent down a monster within hours of the discussion, one that the Rangers knew they had to stall. Angel even broke a personal rule by teleporting into Ninja Ops. "Ready to go?" She asked Cam.

Cam adjusted the hood and mask of his ninja uniform, "Is that what you're wearing?" He asked.

Angel looked down at her clothes and shrugged, she had chosen a pair of comfortable black pants, fitted boots and a long-sleeve purple shirt that bared her stomach under the chest band of her sword. "I didn't see a reason not to. I can fight, climb and run in this." She stepped up to Cam and smirked at him, "It's not like any of you ever offered me a training uniform." That said, she wrapped her arms around Cam quickly and teleported them to the ship.

Her room was dark and quiet, as it had been the last time she'd come up. "Remember to stay close," she breathed in Cam's ear before stepping away. On the bed were two backpacks she'd brought to the ship the day before, filled with the items they would need for their mission.

As Cam settled his bag, Angel pulled the cover off the vent and passed a scanner over the inside to confirm it was clear of bugs. Once assured, she tugged on Cam's ankle and crawled inside. The crawl through the vent was difficult, although neither of them were particularly wide; the cramped vents made everything seem hard. When she finally reached the down shaft, Angel sighed in relief. Then she pulled out the magnetic line they would use as well as the gloves to go with it.

Once the line was secure, she eased her way out into the down shaft, fighting her instincts to keep her body hugging the line like a fiendishly difficult hand stand. Thankfully, the magnetic pull between gloves and line enabled her to ease down the two access points until she found her target. Quickly, she put catch handles beside the entrance and scrambled in. A double tug on the line signaled Cam to head down.

Then it was a longer crawl down a second vent to the containment area. Here, Angel eased out of the vent and sighed. Someone had closed the door, probably to keep the protesting ninjas from bothering people. Once Cam hit the floor, she signaled for him to lift her back up, when he protested she yanked him close, "Look for Kelzack," she hissed in his ear.

Cam hesitated, then nodded and boosted her back into the vent. In moments, she had confirmed they were clear within a reasonable distance and scrambled back out.

Cam had set up his laptop and was hooking the special linking cord into the containment computer. Angel grinned, "We've got time," she told him and dropped her backpack on the ground. "If you can release them in groups, I'll teleport them down. According to what I know of the design, we'll be detected fast, so let's get started."

Cam nodded, "Ready when you are."

Angel took a small red bar out of her pocket and set it on the prison teleportation system. After a moment, it unfolded legs and scrambled into the computer, "Ready," Angel said as the screen came to life.

A large group of ninjas appeared in moments, all talking. "Shut up," Cam snapped, barely looking up. "What Academy?"

"Thunder," one man said.

"Thanks," Angel said and triggered the teleportation.

It wasn't always that difficult, but they managed six trips before someone tripped Angel's first alert. "They're hacking in," she told Cam as she examined a second screen. "Worm program is holding them off. Free larger groups, we'll send them straight to the Thunders."

"Right," Cam nodded.

Angel didn't wait to speak to the ninjas, as soon as they were fully materialized, they were gone. She managed three trips before the second alert happened, "Kelzacks coming," she told Cam, "don't stop."

A muffled explosion heralded the next group, "Last group," Cam announced as Angel triggered the teleportation and someone began to beat on the containment door.

The group appeared just as the door to the containment facility flew open. "Cam," Angel snapped, "disengage." She threw herself at the Kelzacks as she drew her sword. She fought for a few minutes before she realized Cam was beside her, "Get them out of here," she shouted at them. "I can handle the Kelzacks."

"They're gone," Cam replied.

"Why didn't you go with them?" Angel demanded as she ducked one Kelzack and then kicked a second in the knee.

"Secondary mission," Cam replied, "Hunter would kill me slowly if I left you behind."

"Hunter needs grow a pair," Angel snapped back. In the momentary lull that followed, she saw Cam staring at her, "What?" She asked.

"Where did you hear that?" Cam asked, "I didn't think any of the Rangers used that kind of language."

"My mom," Angel replied. "She had a thing about Earth." She glanced at the door and with a jerk of her head sent it flying back to the door frame. Then she got a look at the teleportation module, "That's not good," she muttered, wincing as someone began to pound on the door.

"Can you fix it?" Cam asked.

"It's in pieces," Angel snapped even as she cast an eye over the destroyed machine, "I'm a pilot, Cam, not an engineer." She winced at a particularly strong hit on the door. "Look, I can hold the door, but I can't hold it and teleport. I can't even guarantee I can teleport us off the ship before they got to us."

"What do we do?" Cam said.

"Epsilon," Angel said after a moment. "Morph, we let them in and I fry as many as I can on the way out. Escape pod is to the left, twenty yards. Pods are designed for atmosphere. We get in one, signal ninja ops that we're coming in and hope we don't get blasted on the way down." She took a slender green rod from her pocket, "Worm program for the escape pod, it'll put us down as close to the beach near the academy as possible. I'm going to be useless."

"When did you tell me about epsilon?" Cam demanded.

"I didn't," Angel replied, "Dustin told me that if I didn't bring you back, he'd bury the scout and drop me in the middle of a volcano. Blake told Dustin if he did that, then Blake would fry Dustin's bike and do something unspeakable to his sister. To prevent a Thunder-Wind war, I created Epsilon. Are you ready?"

"Ready," Cam replied.

Angel released the door and pulled Cam behind her as it fell in. Zurgane stepped through the door. Angel muttered an Eltarean curse and lifted her sword, "I never liked you," she sneered in Ialandian.

The sword took on a purple light as Zurgane drew his blades. "I told Lothor he should have killed you years ago," Zurgane replied, "You are too much like your mother."

Angel screamed, unleashing her power at Zurgane without thought for keeping any of it back. The ball of purple lightning plowed over Zurgane, leaving melted metal behind, and exploded against the far wall of the corridor, filling the hall with purple lighting. Angel swayed, felt Cam's arm come around her waist and tried to keep her knees locked. "What happened?" Cam demanded over the sound of the power.

"I got mad," Angel replied. She took an unsteady step, hanging on through sheer will, "Let's go. I'll shield you."

Cam later told her that she had been talking to him all during the trip to the pod, speaking in coherent sentences, instructing him on getting into the pod and everything. He maintained that she had stood up shortly after they departed the ship and declared, "Watch out for the jade mongoose," before falling into a dead faint.

Angel didn't remember that, nor did she remember the explosion that ripped the ship apart behind them.

Angel woke up two months after the final mission on Eltare. Sitting by her bed was Hunter, wearing a deep red shirt and black pants. He was asleep, arms crossed over his chest, sitting up in a chair that looked painfully uncomfortable. When she twisted, Angel saw Blake sitting on the ground on the other side of the bed, back to the wall, with Tori beside him. They were talking softly, with faint smiles.

Then Blake glanced up and saw her, "Angel," he cried, scrambling up, narrowly avoiding Tori's head.

"What happened?" Angel tried to say. It didn't come out right, but Blake frowned.

"Cam said you blasted Zurgane and blew up the ship," Blake said, he turned, "Tori get the Healer."

Tori, on her way out the door, waved her hand.

"What?" Hunter said, "Angel, you're awake."

"Where are we?" Angel asked, this time with better success.

"We had to take you to Eltare," Hunter told her. "Whatever you did, we were afraid Earth couldn't help you. It's been three months."

"There are rules, Hunter Bradley," a sharp, female voice said, "for when a person awakens from a coma."

Angel watched as the Eltarean healer approached her bed, "And as for you." She frowned at Angel, "I do not know what you thought you were doing, but you nearly killed yourself."

"Rage," Angel said slowly, "I got mad. I lost control."

"Indeed," the healer said, "but you'll be just fine."

"Lothor," Angel managed.

"Dead," Hunter replied, "Zurgane and Choobo to. Mara and Kapri were on Earth with their monster, so they survived. Your grandfather showed up and took them back to Ilan. He was the one who said you should come to Eltare."

"We won?" Angel asked as Hunter rested his hand on hers.

"We won," Hunter replied and kissed her forehead, "you did it."

Only the Eltarean healer was confused when Angel burst into tears. Victory, but with a heavy price for the Warlord's Daughter.


End file.
